Tomb Raider: Genesis
by TJJW
Summary: COMPLETED! Like most heroes, Lara Croft was born out of tragedy. Discover her beginnings as Lara faces dangers, perils, and personal tragedies in her first adventures that would lead her to become the Tomb Raider! Please R&R!
1. Prologue: The Innocent's Loss

Please note that I do not own the Tomb Raider franchise, or any character, item, location, etc., except for the characters, items, locations, etc. I have created. Also, to the original Core purists, be warned: my story uses the Legend biography. Please enjoy!**_

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_**Tomb Raider: Genesis**_

_Prologue_

_The Innocent's Loss_

_Like the dew on the mountain,  
Like the foam on the river,  
Like the bubble on the fountain,  
Thou art gone, and for ever!_

_-Sir Walter Scott_

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__The Crash_

_10:21 P.M._

_The Himalayas_

The plane soared in the air like a metallic bird, its turbines churning the snow flying through the sky in the blizzard. Lara Croft looked down from this view and to her drawing of yeti with hearts attacking a village. Her mother's arm around her was comforting and warm. "Just because no one's ever caught one, doesn't mean they're not real," Lara said.

"This is very true," Amelia Croft said, "but perhaps they don't wish to be found. I've heard they're rather fierce."

"Yeti only look fierce," Lara defended, "they probably don't like being so cold all the time. I shouldn't like it either."

"You'll never have to be cold my Lara, if you don't want to be," Amelia said, kissing her daughter's forehead. Lara relished in this thought as she looked out the window. An orange glow was coming from the wing. "Look!" she exclaimed, when a massive tremor shook the plane. Lara and her mother fell out of their seats, tumbling to the floor. As Lady Croft stood up, she asked, "Henry, what's happened?"

"Lady Croft, please sit down!" the pilot answered. Amelia sat her daughter in a seat by the windows. Lara looked up at her mother with a worried look and asked, "Are we going to crash?"

Amelia answered, "Not unless it's absolutely necessary," then took a seat opposite Lara. A suitcase rocketed past and into the cockpit. The copilot was yelling into the radio as the plane began to shake harder. Lady Croft looked down, then back to Lara. "Close your eyes darling," she said, sadly.

"I don't want to close my eyes," Lara said. The plane dipped down steeply as the copilot screamed into his radio. There was a jolt, a storm of white and shattered glass, and then darkness.

The world around her was a red and black blur. The smell of smoke and fire was nauseating. As Lara regained consciousness, the blurry face of her mother appeared. "Are you alright, darling?"

"Yes mother," Lara said, lifting her head. The fuselage was hot and smoky. It was like she was in a furnace. Amelia had a strand of dark hair and a very worried look over her face. "Come on darling," she said, unbuckling Lara's seatbelt. The plane made a loud groaning noise, and as Amelia lifted Lara out of the chair, a large, fiery piece of metal and insulation landed in her seat, which quickly ignited. She held Lara close to her in one arm, and grabbed a suitcase in another. They ran out of the fuselage as several small explosions occurred in the cockpit. Lara and her mother fell into the snow outside of the plane. It was cold and wet, the direct opposite to the inside of the metal death-trap. "Lara, are you alright?" the familiar voice of her mother asked.

"Fine mother," Lara answered. She stood up and grasped Amelia's hand. "Where are we going?"

"There," Amelia said after a brief pause. She pointed to a small ice cave in the mountainside. They rushed inside as more explosions occurred in the plane. Amelia opened the suitcase and took out Lara's overcoat, scarf, and hat, and gave them to Lara. "Bundle up darling," she said as Lara put on the clothes. Amelia herself took out her overcoat and pulled it on. "Try and sleep," she said, laying down in the snow. Lara laid down against the wall and uncomfortably slept.

The next morning was bright and clear, the complete opposite to the snow storm of the night before. Lara Croft was wet and cold after sleeping in the ice cave. As she and her mother stepped out into the light, Lara gasped. A few miles away, over the cliff where the plane had crashed, was a massive temple. "Look!" she said. She had only seen temples in books and pictures her father had brought from his expeditions, but had never before seen one in reality. "Can we go there mother?" she asked, excited. Amelia examined it and sighed.

"It looks safe enough," she said, "but it's quite the journey."

"I can make it," Lara exclaimed. Amelia chuckled.

"Alright, we'll head out," she said. Lara and Amelia climbed several hills past the fuselage until they came to an incline. They carefully climbed down until they came to a sinkhole in the ground. There were remains of the temple located around the perimeter of it. Lara and Amelia climbed down into the pit and saw a path beyond a small stream. Though it was no river, the stream had a slight breadth to it that seemed fairly difficult to overcome. "How will we get across?" Lara asked. Amelia looked up and down, then nodded slightly.

"We'll have to jump," she said, "I'll go first, and then you jump into my arms."

"Are you sure about this?" Lara asked.

"It's the only way," Lady Croft answered. She got as close to the river as she dared and jumped. She landed gracefully on the other side. "Come on darling," she said, reaching out to her daughter. Lara breathed deeply and jumped.

She felt the warm embrace of her mother's arms around her. "See? You did it," Amelia said. Lara looked back and saw that she was very close to the river. "Come along, we're almost there," Amelia said, and they continued into the tunnel.

The whole path was covered in ice, and Lara found it very difficult to walk along it. It was very dark, and one had to be careful of falling down. They came to a small wall, which Lara and Amelia climbed over. Another icy path led to a large staircase. Lara was the first to enter and gasped at what she saw.

The whole room was vast, and the floor seemed to be falling apart. Large lamps on the ceiling hung freely, and bits of snow would fall now and then into the abyss below. They were on a huge balcony overlooking the structure. They climbed down a stairwell and came to a brick landing. "We need to start a fire," Amelia said, "Lara, could you find something to start it with?"

"Certainly," Lara answered. She turned and walked along the broken floor towards the other side of the temple. The ancient floorboards creaked and wailed, as if a slight touch caused them great pain and weakness. There were two large scales alongside a massive pillar with an open doorway. Lara walked inside and descended the stairwell. She gasped at the sight.

The room was massive, with several stone pillars around a ring, with a stone dais in the center, and a black, metal rod sunk into it. Lara stepped up to one of the pillars and touched it. It sprang open with a green glow, and then returned to normal, a different pattern on it than before. "Lara! Have you found anything for the fire?" she heard her mother call. Lara, entranced by what she saw, walked up to the rod. A corpse of a man slouched near the dais did not convince her to walk away. As she neared, she thought the rod resembled the hilt of a sword sunk into a stone. She heard her mother's footsteps, and heard her call her name. Lara reached out and touched the black hilt, and the earth shook.

The hilt rotated in the dais and sunk in deeply. The room began to cast a mysterious green glow, and rings began to rise from the ground. "LARA!" Amelia cried, grabbing Lara and pulling her back. The rings formed around the hilt and a green glow formed in the center. "Stay back!" Amelia cried, "my God. What is it?"

"There's something in the light," Lara said, looking in awe at the formation.

"Stay there," Amelia said. She walked up to the phenomenon, where voices echoed in the dark. "What? Who are you?" she asked. The voices responded inaudibly to Lara's ears. "What-- what about my daughter?" she asked, worried. "She meant no harm!" A new voice was then heard- an angry one.

"What's happening, mother?" Lara asked, "what are they saying?"

"OH GOD!" Amelia cried, and grabbed the hilt. There was a giant burst of green light, and Amelia was gone. "MOTHER!" Lara cried. She ran up to the empty dais. It was perfectly serene. Green glowing dust fell lazily to the floor. She searched around the room, and ran up the stairwell. "MOTHER!" she shrieked. The words resounded across the empty temple. She ran back down to the dais and stared.

Lady Amelia Croft, Lara's mother and friend, was gone.


	2. Part One: The Aspiring Archaeologist

**AN**: Now that it's been about a week, I've decided to update. All those reading (and I know there must be) please, PLEASE review. I would really appreciate your input. Thank you so much for reading!

**Disclaimer**: Please note that I do not own Lara Croft or the Tomb Raider franchise. If I did, do you think I would be writing fan fiction? _

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_Part One_

_The Aspiring Archaeologist_

_When we are motivated by goals that have deep meaning, _

_by dreams that need completion, by pure love that needs expressing -- then we truly live life._

_-Greg Anderson_

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__Chapter One_

_An Announcement_

_9:26 A.M_

_Cambridge, Massachusetts_

Lara Croft sat in her chair in archaeology class. She was 21 years old, and a promising student. She had a long, braided pony tail which stretched down to her back, and delicate features. She was a highly accomplished gymnast, and well taught in dialects of several languages. It was no secret that she was highly intelligent. As the sun shone through the windows of the University, Lara gazed to her right and saw Amanda Evert, her best friend and colleague. She sniggered and motioned to the professor, who's fly was open. Lara laughed quietly and turned back to the teacher.

Lara had left England after being accepted to His Majesty's University, a very accomplished school, sporting its prided archaeology department, a brief time after completing her secondary education at the Gordonstoun Boarding School. She also left partly to remove herself from the fame of being an orphan in the aristocracy of the well-to-do. Her father had died in Cambodia when she was only 15, leading to a largely publicized legal battle between her family and herself for the rights to the Croft fortune. There was also the shadow of her trek from the temple her mother had died in, and the story of the harrowing days she spent heading to the town of Kathmandu. Many had asked of what happened to Lady Croft, but Lara refused to indulge the secrets to anyone but her father and beloved butler, Winston.

This led to the downfall of Richard Croft in the archaeology field. He became obsessed with the phenomenon in Nepal, and researched anything that could have revealed an answer. Perhaps he had cracked at the loss of his beloved wife, but he refused to admit that Amelia had died. This, above all else, led to his disgrace among colleagues.

The professor, Dr. Fredrick Jason, finished his speech and said, "Before we adjourn today I have some very important news: a massive tomb has just been uncovered, possibly that of the Incan civilizations, in Paraíso, Peru. I have spoken with my colleagues and have decided that we will be going to help excavate. We leave next month. Class dismissed."

The bell rang, and the students got up and spoke excitedly about the prospect of going on a real archaeological excavation. "This is fantastic," Lara said to Amanda, as they got up from their seats.

"I know!" Amanda exclaimed, "I can't believe it! After all this time, we finally get to go on a real dig!"

"Ms. Croft, may I speak with you for a moment?" Dr. Jason said. Lara looked at him and then back to Amanda. "See you in a mo'," she said. Amanda smiled and walked out. Lara shouldered her brown backpack and walked up to Jason.

"Yes, professor?" she said.

"Lara, you know that you are my best student," he began, "and as such, I feel you should be rewarded."

"'Rewarded?'" Lara asked, incredulously, "I don't understand."

"As the head of the archaeology department, I have been given the task of choosing a leader of each class," he said, "and I have decided that you will be leader of this class on the expedition."

"Professor!" Lara exclaimed, "I don't know what to say!"

"Say yes," Jason said, smiling.

"Of course," Lara said, "oh, thank you!" She turned and ran out of the classroom. Amanda was waiting at the end of the corridor. "Amanda," she said, "you're not going to believe what just happened!"

"What is it?" she asked.

"Jason just asked me to be the class leader on the expedition!" Lara said. To her surprise, Amanda's face was not cheery at first, but sad, almost jealous. However, the face immediately changed to that of happiness and glee. "Oh, that's wonderful!" she said, apparently swallowing before saying this, "I'm so, _so_, happy for you!"

Lara, catching her previous expression, said, "Are you alright?"

"Oh, fine," Amanda said, swallowing again, "I just can't believe he picked _you_."

"What do you mean by that?" Lara asked, her tone stiffening.

"I mean, my best friend was picked," Amanda said, twisting her face into an unnatural smile.

"Oh," Lara said, not believing this, "alright. Look, there's Sarah!"

Sarah was Lara and Amanda's dear friend, and fellow student in their class. "Hi guys," she said, walking up to them.

"Did you hear?" Amanda said, still bearing the disturbing smile, "Lara was just chosen to be our class leader on the expedition."

"What? Oh that's fantastic!" she said, hugging Lara, "I can't believe it!"

"Neither can I," Amanda said.

"Oh, thanks," Lara said, still distracted by Amanda's expression of before.

"We need to celebrate!" she said, "we'll have a party at Kent's place tonight! Oh, I'm so excited!" Sarah ran off, possibly to talk to Kent, her boyfriend.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Lara asked Amanda. Amanda finally returned her face to normal.

"Fine," she said. She turned and walked down the corridor, leaving Lara alone in the busy hallway.

* * *

Lara took a swig of her drink as she listened to "We Didn't Start the Fire" play at the party. Several party-goers were mingling around. She looked across the room and saw Kent and Sarah kissing passionately. Lara sighed and took another drink. Suddenly, a man with black hair thrown back into a mullet approached her. "Hey Lara," he said in a dazed voice.

"Hello Oscar," Lara responded. She could tell the man was drunk.

"Cool party, huh?" he said.

"I suppose," Lara said in a bored voice. She noticed Oscar's eyes were slanting downward towards her chest. She tapped Oscar hard on the shoulder and said, "I'm glad you appreciate my school sweater, but my eyes are up here." Oscar immediately looked up.

"Sorry," he said, "but you can't deny that you were shaped like a goddess."

"Piss off Oscar," Lara said. The drunken man shrugged and slouched off. Another man then came into view. He had brown hair that was shaped neatly, and was completely sober. "Hi Lara," the handsome man said.

"Hello, David," Lara said, blushing. She fancied him greatly, but couldn't muster up the courage to tell him.

"Nice party," David said.

"It is," Lara said, her voice squeaking slightly. She took a nervous drink.

"So," David said, "I hear you're the class leader on the trip to Peru. Congratulations."

"Thanks," Lara said, blushing more.

"Your parents would've been proud," he said. Lara, who had been looking down in nervousness, looked up into his eyes.

"David," she said.

"Yes?" he inquired.

"I… um… I--" she began.

"Lara! Come here, we want to make a toast to you!" Sarah said, grabbing Lara by the arm and pulling her to a table in the middle of the room. "I see you were able to pull yourself away from Kent," she muttered to Sarah; Sarah didn't catch it. She mounted Lara atop the table and grabbed her drink.

"Here's to Lara Croft, the Brit among Yanks, and a damn sight smarter than the rest of us!" she said. The room cheered and raised their bottles and cups. In the midst of the crowd, Lara saw David, with his bottle in hand, raising it to her.

At this moment, Lara could not be happier.


	3. 1: 2 & 3: The Seeds are Planted

**AN**: Hello again, readers (all one of you). Here are chapters 2 and 3 of Part one in TR: G. I've decided to put in three since its short. Just to remind you, please, PLEASE review my story. Its always nice to have your work appreciated. So, please take some time to review. Thanks everyone!_

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_Chapter Two_

_The Writing on the Wall_

_3:38 P.M._

_Para__í__so, Peru_

"My God."

Those two words were all Lara could say as she entered the cavernous space of the dig site. It was dark and warm, and as Lara brushed dirt off her blue top and brown shorts, her mouth gaped open. There was shrubbery, to her surprise, inside the hole she was in. The wall in front of her had a small space underneath that she could crouch through. She looked up and said, "Come along now, its brilliant down here!" A small group, composed of Amanda, Sarah, Kent, David, and Oscar, crept down the rope that led to the site. "Marvelous, isn't it?" she asked the group. They all nodded in stunned silence. "Come on, just through that hole. Dr. Jason is waiting for us." She walked down the wooden platform she was on and through the space.

The next room reminded her of a mine. "Sweet fancy Moses," Oscar said, crawling through the hole. They continued walking on, occasionally muttering exclamations of awe and wonder. Eventually, they came to a large room where many lamps and supplies were laid out. Jason, dressed all in khaki and looking like a big game hunter, stood in the center of the room. "Hello Lara, I see you've made it!" he said happily.

"Hello professor," Lara said.

"We have a hollow wall over there that we're trying to break through," Jason said, getting straight to the point. He motioned to a wall with several pick-axe marks dug into it. "We don't want to try dynamite because we fear whatever may be on the other side is too fragile, but the pick-axes have had a hard time breaking through. So, I just want your team to see what you can do. If you need me, I'll be down the tunnel checking out another site. The site number is DA-13. Good luck, and do be careful." And with that, he was gone.

"Wow, what a job," Sarah said sarcastically.

"I know, right?" Kent remarked.

"Well, let's get to work," Lara said.

"I like the look of that pick-axe!" Oscar said.

"We all are using them," David said. Oscar rolled his eyes and grabbed the nearest one. "All right ladies," he said, stepping up to the wall, "this is how a real man breaks down a wall!" He took a massive swing and left nothing but a small dent.

"So Oscar, how does a real man break down a wall?" Sarah asked.

"Shut up," Oscar said, taking a few other swings.

"Alright, enough talk, let's get to work," Lara said, grabbing a pick-axe herself. Everyone grabbed one and began swinging at the wall. After about 20 minutes, a few bricks had given way at Lara's side. She reached the tool inside the wall and pulled.

Much of the wall came crashing down. "Now _that_, is how a real man breaks down a wall!" David said. Lara blushed. She looked into the hole she had formed and saw nothing but darkness. She reached into her backpack and pulled out a flare. She threw it into the abyss and saw it fall down a large set of stairs. She looked at her team and swallowed. "Come on," she said, reaching into her backpack and pulling out another flare. She ignited it and carried it down the steps, her team following her.

The steps seemed to go on forever. Eventually, the floor leveled out, and in the red light, a massive stone wall, covered in ornate hieroglyphs, appeared at the end of the room. Jewels and emeralds glowed different shades of red in the flare's light. "Somebody get the professor," Lara said, breathlessly.

"I'm on it," Sarah's voice said, and she heard the sound of her feet rushing up the stairs. Lara, Amanda, Kent, David, and Oscar walked up to the wall and looked at it. "Look at these pictographs," Kent said. Lara threw the dying flare to the ground and ignited another.

"It says a queen guards these caves," Amanda said. Ever since Lara was chosen as the class leader, Amanda spoke infrequently.

"Um… Amanda. It says a _beast_ guards this _temple_," Lara corrected her. Amanda glared at her.

"I think we should get a priest to bless these caves," Amanda said.

"I'm not sure where you're going to get a _padre_ in the jungles, Amanda," Oscar said.

"An _Incan _priest, you idiot," Amanda said, venom dripping in her voice.

"What for?" David asked.

"If a beast guards this temple we should do something to protect ourselves."

"Amanda, you can't seriously believe in this voodoo crap, can you?" Oscar asked.

"We'll only have misfortune if we don't!" Amanda exclaimed.

"Amanda, everything will be fine. We don't need some medicine man to bless the temple," Lara said. Amanda sighed.

"Fine, whatever," she said.

"What's going on here?" the professor's voice asked. They all turned to see a mob of archaeologists and students coming into the room. "My God, look at this!" Jason exclaimed. The scientists pushed the small group out of the way, and started examining the wall. Sarah flowed through the mob and back to her friends. "I can't believe this. Jason said we'll be famous for this!" she said. The tone of the group changed drastically from moments before. Lara embraced David tightly, but was immediately broken up by Amanda. "Lara," she said, softly, "I'm sorry about how I've been acting. I was just jealous."

"Its fine Amanda. Just don't act like a git anymore," Lara laughed. Amanda smiled sincerely. All seemed back to normal, and Lara's future brighter than ever.

* * *

"Lara!" the voice of Anaya Imanu cried out. Anaya was an engineering student at the University, and the leader of her engineering team. 

"Yes?" Lara asked, about to climb down into the pit. She had already sent her team down to check out the progress of the tablet. Since its discovery, the wall was discovered to be hollow, and was now trying to be broken through. She was about to head down and join in on the excavation.

"Lara, we're a bit concerned about the structural integrity of that cable," Anaya said, pointing at the cable that had been hoisting down archaeologists and equipment. "That last crate was particularly heavy, and we think it put too much stress on the cable. I'm checking things out with my superiors, but until then, no one and nothing can be hoisted down on that cable."

"Thanks for the heads up Anaya," Lara said. She walked away from the cable and over to a makeshift tent with several radios and equipment. She picked up a radio and said into it, "Excavation 119, this is base camp. We have some structural concerns about our cable and cannot send anything down until we have official confirmation. Please copy, over."

There was no reply. "Excavation 119, this is base camp, please copy. We have an embargo on our entrance. Nothing in or out, please copy, over." Again, there was no reply. Lara tried this several more times, with the same results. Lara walked back over to the cable and examined it. There seemed to be nothing wrong with it. "Lara!"

Lara turned and saw Amanda walking around the upper layer of the pit, about to grab the rope. "Get down here you slacker! Jason says we're about to break through!"

"In a minute, Amanda. We have some structural concerns," Lara said.

"Just come down here!" Amanda exclaimed, excitedly. Lara sighed and approached the cable as Amanda disappeared from view. She grabbed the rope and began to climb down. She took a glance upward and heard some creaking but paid it no mind. She continued downward and felt a jolt. She heard a tear and fell to the ground.

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_Chapter Three_

_The Sacrifice at Para__í__so_

_5:16 P.M._

_Para__í__so, Peru_

The air was coarse and rough. Lara breathed deeply as she swam towards the beach of the impromptu lake. She crawled up and laid flat on the ground. She was covered in dirt, grime, and sweat. She was soaked to the bone and becoming very cold. Tears streamed down her face as she broke down on the ground, her hands covering her eyes for fear of showing emotion to anyone. Just moments ago she had trudged along a path of death, destruction, and mayhem. She had lost every one of her friends in the massacre. Sarah, whom she had discovered ravaged, as if by some animal. Kent, who had reported that Oscar had died, and was murdered right before Lara's own eyes. David, whom she knew had to have died, and Amanda, who had been crushed and drowned right in front of Lara. She had been incapable of doing anything to stop each one of these deaths; she just stood idly by and watched it all happen. "OH GOD!" she exclaimed to the sky and sobbed harder than ever before.

Most people who knew Lara Croft knew that she was a very happy person, who never let anything stand in her way. These people would have been deeply shaken and disturbed by Lara's appearance now. In her ears, she could hear the cries of people who had died, people calling her name. "LARA!" she heard someone call. Lara opened her eyes and saw Anaya, dirty and a little wet, racing towards her. "Lara, what happened? What's going on?"

"The temple… collapsed… people… dead… killed…. THERE WAS THIS MONSTER! THIS HORRIBLE THING! IT WAS FIERY AND TERRIFYING! IT KILLED EVERYONE! I DON'T KNOW WHERE IT CAME FROM, BUT IT KILLED EVERYONE! OH GOD, THAT BEAST, THAT DEVIL! OH GOD!" Lara screamed. She collapsed and cried in Anaya's arms.

"Lara… everyone's… dead?" Anaya asked, shocked.

"Yes," Lara choked, "the monster… it killed them… it killed them all!"

Anaya did not speak for some time. Finally, she said, "Let's go, Lara." She picked Lara up and helped her walk towards the SUV. Lara spared a glance over to the hole in the ground, where just a few hours before she was checking the integrity of the winch above it.

It was completely filled with water. The setting sun glistened off of it like gold floated on the surface. She noticed a white shape in the water and swallowed. She broke free of Anaya's grasp and ran towards it. _No, no it can't be_, she thought. She grabbed the body and turned it over.

It was David. There were no scars on his body anywhere. He had simply drowned. Lara let out a ghastly, disturbing cry and ran back to Anaya, but stumbled and fell to the dirt. "I NEVER GOT TO TELL HIM HOW I FELT ABOUT HIM!" she wailed, "I NEVER TOLD HIM! HE'S DEAD! ANAYA, HE'S DEAD!" Anaya picked up Lara and helped her walk up the wooden stairs to the SUV. She sat Lara in the passenger's seat and gave her a towel that was in the backseat. She walked over to the driver's side and started the car. She rubbed her palm over her face and sighed. Lara sat in her seat, shaking. A tear fell down her face. She closed her eyes and slept.

* * *

Lara and Anaya had made it to the nearest town and telephoned for help. They were both taken to the police and questioned about the incident, seeing how it was suspicious that only two out of nearly 100 people survived the incident, one of whom had actually been in the temple's collapse. Lara, feeling she would be silenced and locked away, did not mention the monster and it's attacks upon her friends. 

Several weeks later, she graduated early from the University and majored in archaeology, like her parents would have wanted. She traveled back to England, where she was met with the paparazzi and her dear butler, Winston. She went home and sat alone for some time, reading old letters from her parents and books about the world. One cold and rainy day, Winston brought the telephone to her. "A call, Lady Croft," he said.

"No telephone calls please," Lara said, solemnly, and looking at a book about Egypt in her bed.

"It is from one Anaya Imanu, in the United States," Winston said. Lara slowly turned and took the telephone.

"Hello?" she said.

"Hello Lara," Anaya said, "how are you?" Lara didn't answer. "Hello?"

"Yes?" Lara said.

"There's going to be a funeral in two weeks, in Boston. I was wondering if you would come," Anaya said. Lara sighed.

"I don't know Anaya. It might be too soon," she said. She was unsure how she would be able to deal with the faces of the parents and loved ones of those who had been murdered.

"Please Lara. I can't do this alone," Anaya pleaded. Lara sat in silence for a few moments and thought.

"Alright," she finally said, "I'll come."

Lara could not muster a single tear at the funeral. Dressed all in black and sitting near the front, she refused to speak about those who had died. There was only one casket, an empty one, at the front of the church. It would've been too dangerous to find the bodies, the salvagers had said, and thought of it as a memorial. The ceremony concluded with the readings of the names of all those who had died in the cemetery outside of the church. Lara could only sniff at the names of Amanda, Kent, Sarah, David, and Oscar.

As the party left the cemetery to head to the wake, Lara stepped to the freshly dug grave, and over the casket. "I'm sorry," she said, and walked away.

Lara met Anaya at the wake, and discussed their lives after university. There was no mention of Paraíso, but only the exchanging of addresses and future plans.

"I feel like I've had closure now," Anaya said, as they approached Lara's limo to head to the hotel, Winston propping open the door.

"Not I," Lara said, solemnly, "nor shall I ever. Goodbye Anaya, I hope to see you again soon."


	4. Part Two: The Troubled Treasure Hunter

**AN: **Just want to remind my readers to review. I understand that some people found last chapter confusing, and I appreciate your opinion. I'll try to work on that in the future. Please enjoy the rest of the story! _

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_Part Two_

_The Troubled Treasure Hunter _

"_And anytime you feel the pain, hey Jude, refrain,  
Don't carry the world upon your shoulders  
For well you know that it's a fool who plays it cool  
By making his world a little colder"_

_-The Beatles' "Hey Jude"_

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_Chapter One_

_A Professional's Point-of-View_

_3:30 P.M._

_London, England_

As Lara Croft sat in a chair beside the office window, she watched the flecks of rain hit the side and run off. "Lady Croft," a voice said. She turned and saw her psychiatrist, Dr. Grey. He had balding gray hair and small brown eyes.

"Sorry, Dr. Grey," she said. She was dressed in a black dress suit with her hair let down, much unlike her old style of dress from two years ago. Her face was gaunt and pail, her eyes bloodshot and sunken.

She had decided to find a psychiatrist after going through a very severe bout of depression. Ever since the massacre at Paraíso, she had found it difficult to talk to anyone, even Winston. She lost contact with many people, and began to lose her dignity. All she did was read and exercise. One day, she woke up and realized it was Amanda's birthday. She sat in her room the entire day, staring at the ceiling, and realized she would need help, for fear she would take her own life.

So, here was Lara Croft, the very shell of a woman she had once been. All grace and humor left behind, she sat in a psychiatrist's office, desperate to cure herself and return to the way things were. "Lara," Grey said, "you have been visiting me for the past six months, and we have barely approached the subject of what happened in Paraíso."

"You read the papers," Lara said sadly, "there was a cave-in. Unstable conditions. Nothing more."

"There's something you wish to tell me Lara. I'm quite sure of it," Grey persisted.

"No," Lara said, her voice rising, "nothing more."

"Lara, please calm down--" Grey began.

"CALM DOWN?" Lara cried, standing up, "how _dare_ you tell me to calm down! You don't know what it was like down there! You have no idea! The terrors! The horrors!"

"Would you like to talk about it?" Grey asked, disturbingly calm. Lara slowly sat down.

"Yes," she said. And so, she relayed the entire experience of what happened that fateful day in Paraíso. The broken cable, the cave-in, the finding of Sarah's body, Kent's report of Oscar's death, Kent's death, Amanda's death, and the discovery of David's body. She even mentioned the monster that killed them all. The psychiatrist wrote these all down.

"Lara," he said, "I appreciate your telling the truth. I'm going to give you some mild sedatives. I want you to take them for the next 2 weeks. You can pick up the prescription with my receptionist."

"Thank you Dr. Gray," Lara said, smiling for the first time in months, "it feels like a great weight has been lifted off my shoulders."

"I'm glad you feel that way, Lara," Grey said, picking up the phone to call his receptionist, "See you next week."

"Goodbye," Lara said. As she turned to walk out the door, she could swear that she saw Grey mouth _monster_ with a suspicious expression, which disturbed her greatly.

* * *

The next week was a very simple session. That was, until the last 20 minutes. "Lara," Grey said, "I was thinking about what you said about the killer in Paraíso."

"Yes?" Lara asked. He reached over to his coffee table and picked up a manila file folder. He opened it and pulled out a stapled white packet.

"This," he said, showing it to Lara, "is a brief file on David Morse." The bottom of Lara's stomach dropped out. She could not believe that the man in front of her had actually uttered the name of the man she loved. "Y-yes?" she stuttered, her mouth dry.

"Before I go on, I'm going to ask your permission to read his file to you. Do you wish me to do this?" Grey asked.

"What did David's parents say?" Lara asked, both anxious and curious.

"They gave me permission to help one of my patients who was close to David. I'm going to ask you again: may I read David's file to you?" Lara sat in silence for some time.

"Yes," she muttered. Grey opened the file and read David's basic information, his family, all those things. He eventually read the portion about mental health.

"David suffered from a chemical imbalance. This caused severe fits of… violence. Though he wanted to be an archaeologist, his doctor and parents did not believe he could handle the position, what with the confined spaces and drastic climates. He had run out of his medication while on the excavation, and I believe he suffered a severe attack that day of the cave-in."

"What are you trying to say?" Lara asked, flustered.

"I'm saying that David might have been your 'monster.'

"HOW DARE YOU?" Lara shrieked, "HOW DARE YOU SAY SUCH A THING?"

"Lara, think rationally. You had discovered a warning a few days before that described a monster guarding the temple. There were no wounds on David's body. You could have easily seen David and pictured him as a mythical beast with tentacles and claws. It's your mind's way of protecting you."

"I KNOW WHAT I SAW!" Lara cried. She cast aside a lamp into a bookshelf. Several thick volumes fell to the floor. "HOW DO YOU EXPLAIN THE WOUNDS ON SARAH? KENT'S DEATH?"

"You said there were pick-axes at the dig site. I hate to paint a horrible picture, but this could have been the weapon he used," Grey said.

"THE CAVE-IN!" Lara screamed, "DO YOU THINK IT WAS CAUSED BY DAVID? YOU DON'T THINK AMANDA PULLED THAT STONE AND TRIGGERED THE FLOODING?"

"No, I do believe that," Grey said, "but please Lara. You must realize that this is the only way you can get better!"

Lara stood in silence for the rest of the session. Dr. Grey gave his secretary a prescription for sedatives and some other pills that Lara realized could only brain-wash her into believing Grey. She vowed to herself not to take these pills, and remember the sacrifices of Paraíso. It was her way of respecting the dead.

For the next few sessions Lara played along with Dr. Gray, pretending that David was the actual killer, and that she was getting over the incident. The shocking thing to her was that she felt like she actually _was_ getting better. She was laughing, smiling, and talking once more. Eventually, at a positive session, she told Dr. Grey exciting news. "I'm going on an excavation," she said, "in Egypt. Next month."

"Really? That's fantastic. Are you sure you're up to it?" Grey asked.

"Pretty sure," laughed Lara.

"Well, I must say Lady Croft, you certainly have changed. I'm proud of you," he said.

"Thank you, doctor."

"And that," Grey said, looking at his watch, "concludes our session. Thank you Lara, and have a pleasant journey."

"Thank you so much Dr. Gray. Have a good day," Lara said. For the first time in two years, Lara Croft was actually happy and confident in herself.


	5. Part Two, Chp 2: A Few Small Purchases

_Chapter Two_

_A Few Small Purchases_

_4:48 P.M._

_Croft Manor, Surrey, England_

_The red monster soared behind her. Panic filled her veins, causing her to frantically run. She tripped. No, no, go, go! She jumped over the broken pillars. It was right behind her! She grabbed the rope, which quickly broke. The red monster launched over her head and through the wall. _

"_Lara!"_

"_We could be trapped!"_

"_We are trapped!"_

_A loud roar._

"_Oh God!" Amanda pulled the stone. _

"_NO!"_

Lara woke up in a cold sweat. It was 2 days after her last session with Dr. Grey. She couldn't stop having these dreams, these memories. She placed her head onto her palm and breathed heavily. The face of Amanda was disturbing, and the ravenous face of the red monster haunted her. No, there was no way that thing was David. It couldn't.

But what if it was?

No, no it couldn't. She took a long swig from the water bottle on her bed-side table, then laid back down. She needed something, something to make her feel safe, feel strong.

* * *

At around noon Lara was in her study looking at a magazine. Winston walked in carrying a tray of tea. "May I ask what you are looking at, Lady Croft?" he asked, laying down the tray.

"Certainly," she said, revealing her head behind the magazine. She handed it to Winston, who gasped.

"Why are you looking at a firearms magazine?" he asked.

"Curiosity," Lara said, smiling again. She laid down the magazine and pointed at a silver and black pistol. "This is the Browning Hi-Power 9 millimeter pistol. I thought about purchasing one-- actually two."

"What on earth for?" Winston asked, bewildered.

"Self-defense," Lara said, gazing at the file on her expedition to Egypt, situated on her desk.

"Does this have anything to do with Peru?" Winston asked, now concerned.

"It has everything to do with it," Lara said, seriously.

"But--"

"No 'buts' Winston. I've moved on, but one can never be too careful. Now please get the telly and call this number. Remember: two guns."

* * *

A week later, a parcel ended up on the Croft Manor's doorstep. Lara marveled at the two pistols, which, after much bargaining with Winston, were now hers. Several gun clips were included. "How many of those did you order?" Winston asked.

"A few dozen," Lara said, as if talking about the weather. She took out the two pistols and aimed them in front of her; they felt very natural. "Yes, quite nice," she said, placing them into their holsters along a belt. She placed the belt around her waist and smiled. "How do I look?" she asked. Winston merely shook his head. "I'm not highly trained with firearms," Lara said, "I think we should put in a firing range. How about beside the garden?"

"Oh goodness," Winston said, walking off to the kitchen, muttering things like, 'improper' and 'so unladylike'.

"Sometimes you're forced to be unladylike," she muttered to herself.

* * *

Over the next few weeks, Lara trained herself in all aspects of weaponry. These were not only pistols, but machine guns, rifles, and shotguns. She even incorporated acrobatic feats and self-defensive moves into her training. The day finally came when she would be leaving for Egypt. "Goodbye Winston. I'll be home soon," Lara said.

"Goodbye Lady Croft. Please write, it gets very lonely," Winston joked.

"Of course. Bye," she said, and walked through the gates to her plane.


	6. 2'3: The Greatest Find

**AN: **First off, thank you for reviewing my story EmDeSea. It's always nice to get feedback from such a gret writer. I would also like to ask my other readers to please review. I find it rude when people read but don't review. As for my disclaimer, you know the bit.

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_Chapter Three_

"_The Greatest Find Since Tuthankhamen_"

_10:15 A.M._

_Cairo, Egypt_

Though it was still morning, Lara found the Egyptian sun to be incredibly hot. As she got out of her taxi at the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, she took off her red, circular sunglasses. She wiped the sweat off her brow and watched a man rush up to her. "You must be Lady Croft. My name is Faris Ahmad. Please, the meeting is beginning in the conference room," he said, bowing to her.

"Thank you," she said. Her high-heels made a clip-clopping sound as she ascended the stairs into the museum. She looked briefly at a map to find the conference room. She walked past several exhibits of ancient pottery and art and went into the backroom. There, she saw a cream colored door that read "Conference Room." She walked inside and saw several men sitting around a table. "Ah, Lady Croft! How wonderful to see you. How was your flight?" asked a gray-haired man with a bald patch on the back of his head.

"Nice, thank you," Lara said, sitting next to a kindly old looking gentleman.

"Right," said the gray-haired man, "lets begin. My name is Dr. Desmond Hillary. I am currently the curator of the London Museum of Foreign Treasures in London. I have invited you all here today because we have found something. Something big. The greatest find since Tutankhamen. The lost Ark of the Covenant." Dead silence followed this announcement.

"Are you sure?" said the kindly old gentleman next to Lara.

"What do you mean, Paul?" said Hillary.

"I mean, are you sure that it's really the Ark? All texts and professionals acknowledge that it was destroyed by the Babylonians."

"I am quite sure. A recent excavation in Tanis--"

"_Tanis_? Than it definitely not the Ark," said another man with salt-and-pepper hair and glasses, "you've seen too many films, Desmond." He had a hawk-ish face and a bossy, pretentious voice.

"Well hold on," Lara pitched in, "how do we know that it is not there?" Lara herself found trouble believing this, but her feminine intuition seemed to feel otherwise.

"Well Ms. Croft," said Hawk-man, "conventional reason says so. After the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem, they took the Ark--"

"I am familiar with the Ark story," Lara said, her tone harsh. She did not like being told that she was incorrect, nor being lectured over something she knew well of. "Do you not recall the Copper Scroll found with the Dead Sea Scrolls? How they described hiding multiple treasures of Solomon's Temple, including the Ark?"

"Those have yet to be authenticated," said Hawk-man.

"Charles, please--" began Hillary.

"But if there is textual evidence of the hiding of Solomon's treasures, whose to say that the Ark, one of these treasures, is not hidden in Tanis?" said Lara.

"Please, Ms. Croft. I don't think I need your hypotheses, especially from someone who's insecure enough to be carrying weapons to an excavation!" said Hawk-man, who was apparently named Charles. Lara's face turned red.

"What is he talking about, Lady Croft?" asked Hillary.

"Everyone here, with the exception of Desmond as it would seem, heard about your incident at the airport!" Charles exclaimed. Lara had indeed had an issue at the airport involving her permit to take her weapons off the plane. "Yes, your wish to bring them for 'self-protection.' What do you wish to protect yourself from?"

"ENOUGH!" Hillary yelled. Everyone turned and looked at him. "I invited you all here so that we can enlighten the world, and I do not want anger to erupt from it!"

"Do you honestly believe that the Ark of the Covenant is there?" Charles exclaimed.

"I do," Hillary said. Charles sighed.

"Desmond," he said quietly, "you and I have known each other for a long time. I will go on your excavation, if only to humor you." Hillary gave a small smile.

"Excellent. Now let us proceed."

The rest of the conference passed smoothly. Lara kept quiet, silently fuming over Charles' actions. It had been decided that they would be leaving for Tanis in two days time. Lara left the museum in silence and went to her hotel.

* * *

The clock in her room read 7:00 P.M.. She had just come the shower and was wearing a hotel bathrobe. She was in the penthouse of the Pharaoh's Resort in Cairo, a massive suite that took up the entire top of the hotel. She sat on her bed and opened an orange pill bottle. She took out two pills and swallowed them, and followed with the drinking of water. The anger from earlier still burned in her. There was a sudden knock at the door. Lara went and answered it. Hillary was standing there, holding a tray of tea. "A peace offering," he said.

"You did nothing wrong," Lara said, stepping aside so that Hillary could enter. She closed the door behind him as he said, "Oh, but I feel I did. You see, I invited Charles." He put the tray on the dining table and sat in a chair. Lara chuckled and sat opposite him. "Why is he like that?" she asked.

Hillary took a sip of tea and said, "Oh, I just beat him finding a tomb worth thousands. He's been after me ever since."

"So why invite him?"

"Because he's a genius. Yes, he has a rough exterior, but he is brilliant."

"Why did he decide to come on this excavation?" Lara asked.

"Oh, because I think he believes the Ark is in Tanis, too. Lemon?"

"Please, Dr. Hillary." Hillary squeezed a lemon into Lara's cup.

"Call me Des," he said. Lara smiled. She reminded him of a fatherly type, one like Winston, one she could talk to. Lara took a drink of her tea, relishing the feeling of warmth it gave her cold stomach.

"Lara, may I ask you a question?" Desmond said.

"You may."

"What happened in Peru?" All warmth subsided. She felt cold, and suddenly tired.

"Why?" she said, shortly.

"Charles' comment about your firearms," Hillary said, nodding over to a metal suitcase some feet away, "and your reaction to it."

"I was insulted," Lara said, her tone stiff again.

"I understand, but--"

"I don't want to talk about it," she said.

"Very well," said Hillary. There was a tense silence between them.

"I think it's time I go," he said. He stood and headed for the door. "I'm sorry, Lara," he said, and left.

Lara sat in silence, swirling her nearly empty cup of tea absent-mindedly. She placed it hard on the tray and walked to her bed. She picked up the phone, and made a call.

"Hello?" said an elderly voice. It had taken Lara several different connections, but she finally got the voice she wanted.

"Winston?" Lara said, her voice strangely small and innocent.

"Yes Lara?" Winston said, "is there something you need?"

"No," Lara said, "I just… want to talk."

"Oh," Winston said, mildly surprised, "about what?"


	7. 2'4: The Discovery

**AN:** Welcome back. This chapter is a short one, but leads up to the longest, most exciting chapter yet. Please, please review! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything that belongs to Eidos and CD.

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_Chapter Four_

_The Discovery_

_10:28 A.M._

_Tanis, Egypt_

The day was very hot, even though Lara was only in her blue top and shorts. A steady sweat streaked her sun-burned and dirty face, droplets crawling down beneath her red sunglasses. Her knees ached beneath their pads, her toes cramping from kneeling into the sand and rock. Her brown pack stuck to her back from sweat. Even though this would phase any other man, Lara found this all very delightful. She was currently over a large chunk of rock that used to be a temple, slowly uncovering the secrets beneath it.

The expedition team had been at their site in Tanis for four days. Barely a thing had been found. The most exciting was something that had already been discovered by a previous expedition: a large stone door that led down into the sand. Drilling attempts had failed, as the drills would become too blunt, or too short, to fully penetrate the door. Dynamite was out of the question, because, according to Hillary, "a door this thick must be protecting something." However, an engraving in the shape of the sun had been found in the upper right hand corner. The team deduced this was a slot for a key, which meant that there was a way to open it. They were just missing the key.

Since then, the team had been working viciously to either find the key, or a new entrance. Lara was positioned several yards away from the door, in the hills nearby. "Water break!" she heard someone call. She paid it no mind: she had found something new. A tile-like feature in the sand. It was large and thick, with a long crack running down the middle. She took a small pick-axe, and slowly caused a greater fissure in the tile. "Everyone!" she cried, "I think I found something!" Her speed and persistency on the fissure caused it to become larger and larger. Suddenly, there was a loud crack. She turned and looked back to camp; a few people had looked up at her. The ground beneath her jolted. "HELP!" she cried, and suddenly she felt her knees give out.

A sickening rush of warm wind hit her in the face, her limbs flailing upward. She grasped a part of the tile in one hand, and held on as tightly as possible. "HELP!" she screamed again. She reached up uselessly with her other hand, but could not grasp the tile. She looked down, her sunglasses sliding down the bridge of her nose. "LARA!" she heard a voice call. She looked up and saw the face of Faris Ahmad, from the museum. He held his hand out to Lara. She wrenched her left arm upward and grabbed his hand. He pulled her up and out of the hole.

"Thank you," she gasped. Ahmad nodded breathlessly.

"Lara! Lara, are you alright?" several voices exclaimed. She nodded and pointed to the hole. Several people stared over and into the hole. The ground beneath them creaked menacingly, but seemed strong enough to hold. "I think I see something," Hillary said.

"We need a light," said a fellow Egyptologist. Lara gathered herself together and stood up. She reached into her pack and took out a flare. She lit it, and threw it into the hole. The red light fell deep into the darkness, illuminating stone, and reflected off of something shiny. Her eyes widened. "We need rope," Hillary said. It took only a few moments for Ahmad to go and come back with very long rope and a stake. He hammered the stake into the ground deeply, and tied the rope to it. "Des," Lara said, motioning for Hillary to move on. He smiled at her and grabbed the rope. She gave him a box of flares and tools, and gave him the okay. He clumsily inched his way down into the darkness.

"MY GOD! LARA! YOU MUST SEE THIS! EVERYONE! COME DOWN HERE!" Hillary's voice exclaimed. They all whispered excitedly, each one clamoring for the rope. Only Lara seemed less than enthused. "I'll be back," she said, and walked down to camp. Entering her tent, she reached for the metal suitcase she had brought from home. She opened it, grabbed the holsters and snapped them around her waist. She picked up the two pistols, eyeing them silently. The cold metal felt refreshing to her raw hands. She put a clip of ammunition into each one, put a few in her pack, and went out.

"_It's coming! Damn it Lara!_"

"_Stay there, Kent! I'm coming down!_" Her stomach rumbled nervously as she remembered the attacks.

_No_, she thought. _I won't let it happen again_.

"Oh my God! Lara! What are you doing with those?" Charles exclaimed.

"I'm going into the tomb," she said smoothly.

"But why do you need those?" he said. Lara didn't answer. Grasping the rope, she remembered how she had met Amanda in the antechamber of the temple, before the flood room. Amanda had been so frightened. She remembered how her heart had been hammering as she swung from the pole to the rope high above the floor to get to the corridor that would allow her to reunite with her dear friend.

_No_, she thought once more. _Not again_.

Her boots hit the hard floor of the tomb. She placed her sunglasses into her pocket and examined the surroundings. Ornate hieroglyphics adorned the walls, along with statues of gods and goddesses. The whole room was in a dim red light, with the exception of the small area of sun that came through the hole. "Desmond?" Lara's voice echoed in the darkness.

"Here," Hillary's voice replied in excitement. Her eyes adjusting to the dark, Lara could see Hillary standing next to a platform, where a gold box adorned with images of cherubim and angels was situated. Lara gasped.

"My dear," said Hillary, "what you see here is the Ark of the Covenant."


	8. 2'5: The First Tomb Raid

**AN:** I've decided to update a little in advance. This is probably my favorite chapter, and the longest you've read yet. This details Lara's first _real_ adventure. As always, please leave feedback. If you leave feedback for me, I'll leave feedback for you.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything that belongs to Eidos or CD.

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_Chapter Five_

_The First Tomb Raid_

_8:15 P.M._

_Tanis, Egypt_

The night was jovial, to say the least. Photos had been taken, calls had been made, and beers had been handed out. Everyone was congratulating the other. One of, if not the biggest, discoveries of the 20th century had been found by a rag-tag group of archaeologists, just by a simple accident. "When should they get here, Mike?" an Egyptologist asked a man with blonde hair. The 'they' he had been referring to was the curators of the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, government officials and soldiers, and the press. "A few more hours," Mike said.

Lara looked out from the celebration to the full moon. It silhouetted the crank that had been placed over the treasure room's entrance, and the two guards beside it. She jumped as a warm hand was placed over her shoulder. It was Charles. "Lara," he said, "I'm sorry about what happened the other day. I guess you were right after all, eh?"

"Yes, I suppose so," she said.

"Friends then?" he asked. She willed herself to smile; the man who she felt had accused her of being insane was not someone who was easy to forgive. She said yes just to get him away.

"Excellent," he said, "now come back to the party. We want to make a toa--"

The sound of a high-pitched whistle erupted the night air. The sound of music and laughter died down as everyone looked back to the guard. They saw small yellow lights come from the guards' weapons, which were accompanied with an echoing bang. Several horses than appeared before them, bearing tall, dark riders. They fired at the guards, who slumped to the ground. Several people behind Lara whispered fiercely. They scrambled into the back of the tent. Lara tipped a table over and hid behind it.

The sound of hoofs against sand became louder and louder. A language was spoken between several people, but Lara did not catch what they were saying. She heard the crackling of fire, and saw an orange ball of light through the top of the tent and land onto it. Several more balls of orange flew through the air and onto different tents. "RUN!" she heard someone scream. She looked past the table and saw the archaeologists run through the back of the tent. More shots were fired. She heard slumping against sand, screams of pain and fear. Adrenaline pumped through her body. She turned and ran through the back of the tent, hearing bullets whiz behind her.

The whole area was chaotic. Bodies in pools of red sand were everywhere.

_No, it's happening again!_ she thought.

Fear coursed through her body. What could she do? Should she run and hide? What about the others?

Now something new grew in the pit of her stomach. It slowly swelled over, and flowed through her extremities. The will to survive? Adrenaline? Lara did not know what to call this feeling, but she didn't mind it. She actually began to enjoy it. Like fuel to the fire, it set her off across the sand.

She sprinted across the sand, dodging the fire of bullets and flame from the riders. She dove into her tent, which was slowly burning down. There, she saw Hillary, hiding behind Lara's bed. "Lara! What's going on?" he said to her.

"I don't know. We need to hide. Get everyone to the treasure room. They'll be safe there. I'll hold them off as long as I can," Lara said, her heart racing. She grabbed her pack and placed several magazine clips, and a photo of her parents and Winston, inside of it, and slung it over her back. She attached the holsters, still holding her pistols, around her waist and said, "Go. Now!"

"But--"

"No 'buts.' Get them to the room!" A burning piece of canvas fell very close to her, but Lara didn't flinch. Hillary nodded and ran out of the tent. Lara took a breath, then ran.

BANG BANG. Slump. BANG. Slump. Lara fired off into the darkness, striking the riders. "Get to the treasure room!" she heard Hillary shout. She saw a rider aim its bayoneted-rifle towards him. She pulled the trigger of her pistol. The man was dead before he hit the ground. SPLAT. Lara felt intense pain in her right arm. Blood trickled down it. A bullet had grazed her arm. She turned and fired at the shooter, killing him. She dove for his rifle and fired at another rider. He slumped down to the ground. She sprinted up to his horse and dove onto it. She took a riding crop that was situated in a small pouch on the saddle and slapped the back end of the horse, commanding it onward. It sprinted forward, towards a few other horse-back killers. She aimed the rifle and shot two. She rode up to one and drove the bayonet on the end of the rifle into the man's side. The jerk of the man sent the rifle out of Lara's hands. She was nearly at the entrance. She watched as a man cut the rope leading inside of it. She took out a pistol and fired at the man.

BANG. Slump. Lara dismounted and ran up to the hole. She peered slowly inside of it and saw the archaeologists, surrounded by a black mass of riders. She tore her head away and breathed heavily. The adrenaline slowly left her, forcing her to sit. Her right arm ached painfully. She breathed in one last time and stood. Her fingers were trembling. How had she done that? A British girl who has never killed a single thing in her life had killed mass numbers of human beings. This wave of emotion was almost too much.

_You can't cry now_, she thought as tear fell down her face. She quickly wiped it away and looked back at the hole. It would be a long drop if she jumped.

_How do I get inside?_ she thought to herself. She replaced the cartridges in her pistols and looked around. The orange glow of the campsite ablaze illuminated the night sky. She heard someone far away, near the door. Lara ran over and took out a pistol. She leaned against the wall, listening to panting and sniveling. She came out from behind the wall and aimed at the figure. He was leaning against the rifle, his hands bloody. In his left hand was a small circle with triangular figures on the edges. It resembled the sun.

"Give me the key and I'll let you live," she said, her pistol still pointed at the man's forehead. He took the bayonet from the end of the rifle; Lara tensed. He threw her the key, and drove the bayonet into his stomach. He slumped to the sand, dead. Lara's eyes widened. Her breathing was short. She replaced her pistol and grabbed the key from the sand. She walked up to the door and placed it into the slot. She turned it, and watched it get pulled into the door. The door slid aside, and revealed a vast, cavernous space. She took a flare from her pack and walked inside.

She slowly walked down the steps, the flare casting an eerie glow. She eventually entered a mid-sized chamber, with torches lining the walls. Hieroglyphics adorned the sand-colored walls, detailing slaves pulling large stones as the pharaoh watched them. She stuck her flare into the torch, lighting it. She did the same for the torch on the other side of the room. The room seemed even larger with the proper illumination. Large poles hung on the walls, possibly for flags. Lara could just imagine the place when it was in its prime. She took a step forward.

The room shook, her body fell. She grasped the edge of the floor and looked down. Large spike rollers were beneath her, turning menacingly. She pulled herself up, trying to stay balanced in the shaking room. She laid on her back as the floor returned to normal. "Dear God," she muttered, coughing loudly. She stood and looked around. Walking would not work; she would need another way. She gazed back at the flag poles and gulped. "You're mad, Lara," she said to herself. She took a few steps back, and sprinted up towards the pole. Just as the floor dropped out beneath her, she jumped, grasping the pole in her hands. She rotated around it, feeling it bend with her every motion. She jumped at the last minute and landed onto another pole. She rotated over this too, and jumped onto the third, doing the same. She jumped one last time, landing on the stone floor. It was solid, and led to another entrance. Lara turned and saw the floor return to normal. She smiled, relieved, and continued on.

She turned right and staggered backwards immediately. The room was bright orange and red. It was incredibly hot, as it should've been. Fountains of fire danced across the room. They came from small holes in the walls, each coming out in a rhythm. "I'm going to ruin my boots," she said to herself. She stood for several minutes, her eyes watching the pattern made by the dancing flame. Top flame, middle flame, bottom flame, bottom flame, top flame, middle flame. The pattern continued on until the end of the corridor. She heaved in heavily, as she had many times that night, and ran into the blaze.

She ducked beneath the jet of fire. She could smell singed hair. She jumped over another spurt. Her feet felt warm at the soles. She rolled beneath the flames, her body covered in ash. She dove out and into the corridor. Lara coughed loudly, the ash choking her lungs. She brushed some off her body and leaned against the wall. It was quite cool compared to the hell hole she had just been in. He right arm stung from the ash in the bullet wound. _I'm going to have to start bringing medipacks_, she thought. She coughed one last time, and then continued on.

The corridor continued for some time. There were no traps, just hieroglyphics. They told of how the Babylonians conquered a people whose ancestors had once belonged to the Egyptians. The Babylonians had found many great treasures, the greatest being a golden box. The Egyptians traded the Babylonians this treasure for several of their own crafts. The Egyptians, now in possession of the Ark, had tried to discover its divine properties. Yet, they could not. In fact, the Ark caused a great flood that threatened to destroy all of the city of Tanis, where it was being kept. The Egyptians buried the Ark, and left the city to be destroyed by the flood from the Nile.

Lara finally ended this corridor at a door. She pushed it aside and looked around. The room she was in was massive. There was a large waterwheel to her left, but it was not turning. It seemed to be powered by a half-pipe beneath a sealed hole in the ceiling. Lara guessed it was holding back water. To her right was a large hole in the wall. Rope was dangling from it. She heard voices and ducked back into the hallway. She peeked out of the corner and saw eight men with guns talking and laughing. Lara took out her pistols, and jumped.

BANG BANG. The man Lara shot collapsed. BANG BANG BANG BANG! His gun fired off as he fell to the ground. Everyone, including Lara, ducked. She heard the sound of plaster breaking, and turned to see the sealed part of the ceiling begin to fracture. Water trickled from it, eventually increasing until it broke all of the plaster. The torrent ran down the half-pipe and onto the waterwheel. It slowly came to life, turning increasingly faster. Dust fell along the sides of the walls. The men shouted in fright. The room began to quake. Lara looked around and saw the ceiling to the right of the waterwheel slowly coming down onto them. She sprinted towards the opening, a few men attempting to climb back up the ropes. Two others grabbed their rifles and fired at Lara. She shot back, killing them both. The ceiling was coming in faster. She dove forward and into the entrance way. She heard screams of pain and shuttered. She holstered her weapons and walked on.

Lara walked for several yards, her body becoming exhausted. She was very thirsty and tired. She slumped against a wall to catch her breath. She closed her eyes for a moment, then continued on.

_I will make it_, she thought to herself, _I know it_. She eventually entered another chamber. It was very small, almost like a corridor. However, the end was sealed. "No, I couldn't have made a wrong turn," she said to herself. She stepped forward, and felt the rush of air behind her. She turned and saw her entrance sealed. She was trapped! She noticed several skeletons lining the room, all cut in three parts. Lara slowly stepped forward. Suddenly, two sharp blades connected with each other from opposite walls. They rushed towards Lara's neck.

Her adrenaline was pumping again. Her heart raced. She trotted backwards, and heard the same blade sounds. She turned and saw a blade heading for the back of her knees. She looked forward again and jumped backwards. The blades from below missed her, and headed for the other end of the room. She landed just beneath the top blades, so close strands of hair got caught in its stream of air. She stood, and saw one more blade head for her waist. She dove backwards, and landed flat on the ground. The blades receded back into the walls. Lara stood and felt something she least expected: exhilarated. She felt powerful, she felt free. She smiled to herself. The door ahead of her opened. She saw a gold box on a platform, and several people below it. She found them.

Lara raced forward and pulled out her pistols. She fired at a man to her right. To her left. One from behind. She discharged the empty cartridges and replaced them. She pointed them at the final man. He had a large scimitar in his right hand, and a rifle in his left. The scimitar was positioned at Hillary's neck, ready to cut his throat. "Let them go, or I swear I'll execute you where you stand!" The man turned around and pulled off his hood.

It was Faris Ahmad.

Lara's eyes widened. Ahmad smiled at Lara, the scimitar still against Hillary's neck. "Faris? What are you doing?" she asked.

"Saving our treasure," Ahmad said. Lara tightened her grip on her pistols.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Ever since Moses was told to make the Ark, power has followed in its wake. He received messages from it, it had powers of its own. God is in it," he said. Ahmad had gone mad! Lara involuntarily trembled.

"Faris, please," she said.

"I knew you people would take it, put it in some museum. I told my people of your desires. I said I would take it, and give supreme power to my people."

"Your plan will not work," she said, "the police are coming. The whole government. They'll kill you before you even touch it."

"Let them try," Ahmad said. There was a sudden creaking from behind Ahmad. He looked. The Ark seemed to have moved. Lara fired at Ahmad. The scimitar fell from his hand. He moaned in pain. He took the rifle and aimed at Lara. She jumped into the air and fired at Ahmad. He dove for cover behind a fallen tile and fired at Lara. The bullets whizzed past her. She fired again at Ahmad, but she just missed. She landed in shadow. While quickly and nervously reloading, Ahmad fired over Lara's head. She looked up, and remembered seeing only stones, then darkness.

Lara's mind was fuzzy. Her forehead ached terribly. Her whole body hurt. She spit a small amount of blood out of her mouth and peered upward. She saw the blurry figure of Ahmad, his scimitar in his hand again. He appeared just as battered as Lara felt she was. "It is time," he said. He grabbed her scalp, causing her eyes to water and groan in pain. _Help me_, she thought. Ahmad took the scimitar and placed it against Lara's throat. "And now, Lady Croft, it is time to make this room a tomb," he said. Lara's eyes began to tear. She looked over to the Ark and saw something miraculous.

Richard Croft, standing there very serenely. He smiled warmly, his eyes full of life. Lara's father was here for his daughter. He nodded and mouthed, _I love you_. Lara's heart felt very warm. Strength returned to her body. She blinked, and then elbowed Ahmad in the crotch. He staggered backwards, dropping his scimitar. Lara stood, power flowing through her veins. She picked up the scimitar then brought it down swiftly upon Ahmad's neck.

She dropped the sword and looked back at the Ark. Richard was gone. Lara stared blankly at the golden box, remembering her father's loving face. The world seemed to slow down. The archaeologists stood and ran towards the opening in the ceiling. Police were throwing down a rope ladder, press snapped photos, voices screamed in rejoice and relief; yet, all Lara could do was stare at the Ark, wishing for one last warm embrace from her father.

Lara was hospitalized in a room at the Maadi private hospital in Cairo. She gave no statements to the press about what happened, even though the rest of her expedition did. Winston came and helped her heal emotionally after what happened. He was her only confidant over the adventure.

The day before she was to return to Croft Manor, Desmond Hillary came to visit her. "Hullo," he said, brining flowers with him.

"Thank you," Lara said, "you can just put them in the vase." She motioned to a vase next to an open window.

"Lara, I know this seems very soon, but… would you please grant me the honor of joining me on another dig? I haven't decided where yet, but…I would love for you to join," Hillary said.

"Oh," she said, "I don't think so, Desmond. I am very flattered, but… I don't feel free when I'm with someone on a dig. I don't know what happened to me in Tanis, but… I think I've changed for the better."

"So, that's a no then, right?" Hillary said.

"Sorry Des," she said. Hillary smiled.

"You'll be receiving your share of the money from the find in a few days," he said.

"Thank you," she said. He bowed politely to her, and left. Lara smiled and looked out the window, relieved to be free.


	9. 3'1: The Tomb Raider

**AN: **We now begin the last part of TR: G. Lara Croft shall soon embark on an incredible adventure that shall set the groundwork for her future in Tomb Raiding. Please enjoy, and remember to review. If you review my story I'll review yours.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything that belongs to Eidos and/or CD.

* * *

_Part Three_

_The Tomb Raider_

_"Change is the constant, the signal for rebirth, the egg of the phoenix."_

* * *

_The Breakthrough_

_10:18 A.M._

_London, England_

The time was spring. The white clouds in the blue sky would float lazily as streams of gold would occasionally cast down from the sun. Lara Croft stared at this picturesque vision, wanting nothing more than to stroll through her garden back home, perhaps enjoying a cup of tea with Winston.

"Lady Croft?" Dr. Grey said. Lara turned and smiled at the gray haired man before her. She had regained her normal skin tone and physique, her hair tied into a braided pony tail.

"Lovely day, isn't it?" she asked.

"Indeed," replied Dr. Grey. He looked down at his chart. "I see you had a bit of a rigorous experience in Egypt. Congratulations on finding the Ark of the Covenant."

"Thank you," Lara smiled.

"In the hospital for a few days, wasn't it?"

"Yes, that's right," Lara said, still smiling. Grey looked up curiously at her.

"Why does this amuse you?" he asked inquisitively.

"Because… I felt alive again," Lara said.

"How so?"

"Running through the tombs, dodging the bullets, avoiding the traps… it just rejuvenated me." Grey was silent for a few moments.

"I see…." he said, writing notes on his legal pad. Lara peered curiously to the paper. "Did you feel shaken in any way?" he asked. Lara blinked. There were two things that stuck with her ever since Egypt. One was her killing spree. She had ended the lives of so many people in an instant. It left her feeling remorseful and guilty. How had she been capable of such things? It made her feel... different. Like some new person. Not necessarily bad, but... not very good, either. However, she came to accept this, though the thoughts still chilled her.

And yet, amidst the violence was the image of her father, watching her lovingly, mouthing the few words that meant the most to her. He had appeared to her, clear as day. Was she mad? Or was this some vision? Some sort of supernatural, or spiritual phenomenon? Lara didn't know. Yet she constantly ran the image of her father through her head over-and-over again like a film. Sometimes when she did this she felt sad and alone. Other times, she felt strong and bold. It was very odd, but she came to accept this too.

Dr. Grey stared curiously at Lara, waiting for an answer. Should she tell him her thoughts? Would it lighten her emotional load? Or would he give her more medicine to brain-wash her into an ignorant weakling?

"No, not at all," Lara said, her expression masking the emotions within her.

"Really?" Grey asked, his eyebrows raised in mock surprise, "I myself would at least be moved by having discovered the biggest artifact since… what are the papers calling it?... 'the biggest find since King Tut.' Or perhaps having saved the lives of fifteen scientists, defending them against violent tribesmen, and having come close to death on several occasions--"

"They won't be the last," Lara said, her voice stern and controlling.

"What do you mean?" Grey asked, "you found something that history books will remember, children will know your name. Surely you can survive on those funds alone, correct?"

"No," she said.

"Why?"

"I don't think I could really survive like that. I am not the kind of woman who attends white tie events, enjoys hobnobbing with the Queen. No, I need the fresh air, the sun on my face, the cool breeze in my hair. The adrenaline rush of cheating death, of achieving nearly super-human feats. No, Dr. Grey. I don't think I'm ready to hang up my pistols yet."

Dr. Grey wrote down several notes, and then looked at Lara. "Well Lara," he said, "I am proud of your large steps you took from when you first came to me. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were a completely different woman."

"That's because I am, now." Grey smiled at her.

"That's it," he said.

"That's what?" Lara asked, confused.

"The breakthrough," he said.

"I'm sorry?"

"You've been able to conquer your fears, the barriers you had when you first came to me. It began the day you first really spoke to me, when you told me about Paraíso. You let me tell you about David, and you accepted that." (Lara involuntarily swallowed at the sound of David's name.) "You became healthier and stronger, both physically and mentally. The day you told me that you would be heading to Egypt, I had my fears for you. But you proved me wrong. Indeed, you proved me _very _wrong. And now you come here a new woman. That is what we call the breakthrough."

Lara blinked slowly, her face emotionless. She then smiled. "Thank you," she said.

"You're done now, Ms. Croft. Congratulations."


	10. 3'2: A New Treasure

**AN:** To all my readers, thanks for reviewing and adding my stories to your favorites. It really makes you happy to know when people enjoy your art. As always, remember to review. If you review my story, I'll review yours. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing that belongs to Eidos/Crystal Dynamics

* * *

_Chapter Two_

_A New Treasure_

_10:23 A.M._

_Croft Manor, Surrey, England_

The rain poured hard against the windows of Croft Manor. Thunder roared distantly. Lara was in her study, the fireplace alight, a book in front of her. The shuffling of feet made her look up. Winston was carrying a breakfast tray of tea, toast, margarine, and other assorted foods. He placed it on her desk and said, "Still researching?"

"I think I may have found my next treasure," she said. Winston raised his eyebrows.

"It's been less than a month since Egypt, Lady Croft. Don't you think you should rest a little while longer? You were in the hospital, after all."

"I've been getting anxious. I feel the need to get out of the house, and out of this miserable English weather," she smiled. Winston shook his head.

"It gets very lonely here with no one to talk to," he said. Lara smiled sadly. She knew Winston was not one to get out of the house, and he seemed even more secluded after his wife died, long ago. "I'm sorry, Winston," she said, "I truly am. Perhaps you could find yourself a lady friend?" Winston smiled.

"Oh goodness, Lara. I'm far too old for that kind of sociality," he said.

"Just a thought," Lara laughed.

"So, what's this new quest going to be? The Jade Egg? How about the Philosopher's Stone?" he said, shuffling towards Lara.

"Not the Stone, but that is a good idea, I'll have to keep that in mind." Winston shook his head. She pushed the book towards him and pointed at a small statue of a man. Though it was just an illustration, you could tell it looked magnificent.

"What is it?" he asked.

"The Statue of Jehovah. It was held by King Solomon, and hidden before the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 597 BCE. It's the only known image of God made by the Israelites."

"Isn't that also the story of the Ark?" Winston asked, setting down on a cushy couch. "About the part with Solomon I mean."

"Yes, along with the rest of Solomon's treasures."

"But the Ark was not hidden. It was taken to Egypt. Shouldn't the Statue be another thing in the treasure hall in Tanis?"

"Doubtful," Lara said, holding the book in one hand while she stood and began to slowly walk around the room.

"Why?" Winston asked, taking a cup of tea from the tray.

"After the Ark was taken away, the whole hall was scoured for anything else that was there. They only found a few coins and trinkets. As I learned from the hieroglyphics, the Ark was carried in battle against the Babylonians. Yet, when the Israelites lost, the Babylonians took the Ark," she said, going to a window and looking out of it.

"And what of the Statue?" Winston asked.

"Hidden, along with the rest of Solomon's treasures."

"And you believe the Statue to be…?"

"In Jerusalem," she said, turning back around to Winston.

"_Where_?" Winston asked, surprised.

"Jerusalem. My studies, along with several tips from friends of my father's in the Middle East, seem to point to the possibility of the Statue being in a cave somewhere in Jerusalem. According to these texts, that cave is likely to be under the Temple Mount."

"The Temple Mount? Lara, do you know how protected that place is? You'd never get in. And if you did, if you were caught…." Winston said, fading off at the fate of Lara.

"That's why I won't get caught," Lara said. She shut the book hard and placed it back on her desk.

"What even makes you _think_ that the Statue is there?" Lara sighed again at Winston's comment.

"In the 19th century, Charles Wilson and Charles Warren began a survey over the Mount. Warren studied the area around the Huldah Gates on the southern face. He eventually discovered a passage to a series of tunnels, all leading off into different directions. Since Warren, no one has been able to enter these tunnels," she said.

"There's probably a reason for that," Winston said.

"You can't change my mind, Winston. Arrange for a plane to Jerusalem. I would like to be there by Saturday." Winston shook his head.

"If you really must," he said, walking off. Lara smiled, took her cup of tea, and returned to the window.


	11. 3'3: Warren's Tunnels

**AN: **Sorry this took so long to update. Been kind of busy lately. Well, go ahead and enjoy the next chapter, and remember to review!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything that belongs to Eidos/Crystal Dynamics.

* * *

_Chapter Three _

_Warren's Tunnels_

_12:28 A.M._

_Jerusalem, Israel_

The night was surprisingly cold. Lara Croft stalked the forbidden area of the Temple Mount, far beyond closing time. The cold metal of the pistols clung to her legs. She had been able to sneak in during the changing of the guard, and had remained in hiding until midnight. The grass and stone squelched beneath her boots as the chill air blew lazily through her hair. She crept behind a wall and looked past it. There were no guards, but only a chain-link fence enclosing a boarded up piece of stone. The stone seemed to stick out from the main portion of the wall, like a door. Lara smiled to herself. She walked stealthily up to the fence and pushed it. For some strange reason, it was already cut into a large enough hole to crawl through near the bottom. She crawled through the hole, and pushed the mesh back into place. She went up to the boards, and pulled lightly on one. It tumbled into her hands. _Odd_, she thought to herself, _someone should've checked on these_. She proceeded to pull the rest of the boards down, then walked into the jagged hole and carefully replaced them.

Lara turned and was somewhat crestfallen at what she saw. Expecting high, massive walls and beautiful pictography, what she saw was craggily, thin walls that made her feel very claustrophobic. _They can't all be winners_, she thought. She reached into her pack and took out a compass. The needle was facing north. She closed it, placed it into her pocket, and began walking.

There were many twists and turns in the tunnels. Some would lead to dead ends. Others led to more choices over which path to take. All the while, Lara felt the entire expedition was a wild goose chase, and that the Statue wasn't there. At last, she came to another dead end. However, this area was wide, and had small alcoves with rocks and pottery. Her flare cast a mysterious red glow over this dead end, carefully inspecting the rock in front of her. Either side of this wall had an indentation, similar to a sliding door. The flare was dying. Beneath the familiar hiss of the flare was another sound, but Lara could not quite make it out. The hiss eventually subsided, and the flare went out. Yet, the new sound was still there.

Lara turned behind her and heard foot steps and loud conversations. Beams of light began to appear down the turn into her passage. She ran over to an alcove and dove behind a large rock. She peeked over the top and saw a large group of men, at least thirty, some holding lights, and others, guns. She couldn't take them all. "Move along now," a deep voice said, "move along. Let me see." A tall man with glasses and a graying goatee appeared from the middle of the crowd. He seemed to be the leader. He stepped up to the dead end and touched it. He muttered something under his breath and turned around. "This is the entrance," he said to the crowd, "open it."

"Where's the C-4?" another man asked. He was shorter than the first, but still seemed to be of great importance.

"Here," a man with a heavy pack said.

"Put it up," the shorter man said. The C-4 man walked up to the wall and placed the bomb there. "Step back!" he said. Everyone then walked quickly back to the corner of the passage, the C-4 man trailing the detonation wire and detonator with him. "Fire in the Hole!" the man yelled.

"Oh bollocks!" Lara whispered, scrambling as close to the wall of the alcove as possible. She covered her hands over her ears and crouched down.

There was a deafening explosion. A dust storm blew out from the detonation area. The whole of the tunnel shook. There were loud coughs from the group down by the passage turn. "Everyone alright?" the first man asked. There were loud groans. "Excellent!" he said. The man and his shorter accomplice began walking back down to the former dead end, the rest soon following. The first man waved his hand around, clearing his air of the dust. "Give me that light," he said to a guard next to him.

"Yes, Mr. Hightower," said the man. He gave the light to the man named Hightower, who pointed it at the now massive hole in the wall. He smiled. "We're getting closer," he said, and proceeded into the hole.

Eventually the dust settled, the stones stopped falling, and the ground stopped shaking. The whole tunnel was peaceful and quiet. This was only interrupted by a small cough from beneath a pile of debris. The debris began to shift and move, and eventually fell apart. Lara Croft came out of the debris, covered in dirt. There was a very loud ringing in her ears as she walked out of the alcove. She coughed again and wiped some dirt off her face. She groaned quietly and stretched out her back. "My God," she muttered. She felt very tired, and desperately wanted to lay down in bed. She let out a big yawn and shook her head. "No," she said, her tone half-resigned-and-half-optimistic, "got to keep going." She stretched a little more and walked through the hole in the wall.

If Lara's expectations had not been met before, they certainly were now. The walls were massive and ornately decorated with pictures and ancient scrawl. Torches, recently lit, lined the walls. "I'm falling in love," she said to herself. Even the tombs she had visited in Egypt were not as magnificent. She walked down the hall, admiring the artistry and splendor of ancient Israel. She eventually came to a large cavern with a stone bridge that seemed to had collapsed into the lake that occupied most of the cavern. Lara saw a stake with a rope attached to it leading across the lake to the other side of the cavern, where a yellow raft was left, along with two stage lights to give light to the exit of the cavern. Lara gingerly tested the water with a finger. It seemed fine.

Lara carefully lowered herself into the water, barely making a sound, and looked around. There was no one around. She suddenly felt very alone, very independent. This feeling was both frightening and exhilarating, the same feeling she had had in Egypt. She turned to the other side of the cavern and began swimming.

"Didja hear that?" asked a man.

"Yeah. Sounded like someone in the water!" another voice replied.

"Who's there?" the first asked. He took a light and shone it at the water. Lara quickly submerged. The beam of light seemed to twist and distort underneath. The light went away, allowing Lara the chance to swim back up.

Too soon. The light blinded her, causing spots to appear before her eyes. "Fire!" the second man said. Water exploded in small bursts around Lara, splashing it into her eyes, and only increasing the disruption of vision. She dove back under and swam quickly through the water. It suddenly felt very cold to her, almost stifling. She reached the end of the cavern and leapt out of the water. She pulled back her arm, then thrust her fist into the face of the first guard. She kicked the second hard in the gut, sending him into the water. The first guard, his nose broken and bloody, took his rifle and aimed it at Lara. She pushed the rifle away before he fired, took it, and smashed the hammer of it into the guards face. He fell down, unconscious. Hearing water splashing behind her, she shot the second guard. She strapped the automatic rifle onto her pack and went through the unconscious guard's gear. She found three clips of ammo and placed them into her pockets and pack.

Lara jogged steadily through the exit. _My God, what have I done_? she thought as she passed the walls. They were no longer glamorous, but brown, with poorly drawn pictures, and hastily written messages. Swords and spears lined the hallways, giving Lara the image that the soldiers were stationed here when the Babylonians attacked. After a while, passing through sharp twists and turns, she came to a deep chasm. She sped up her run into a sprint and jumped. She landed on the other side, and felt the ground beneath her sink. She had landed on some sort of pad, and, looking up, noticed the pad had opened up several large holes. The sound of rushing water was heard, and eventually came pouring through these holes. Looking several yards ahead, she saw a stone door slowly closing. She quickly began to sprint towards the door, feeling the water slowly rising. There were several loud whooshes, and a few darts quickly flew by. Each tile she stepped on sent darts out of the walls. She ducked, and then quickly dove through the door, which had just been closing. There was a loud crashing sound, which signaled that Lara had just made it.

The water seemed to had made it through into her current room. It was up to her shins. The room Lara was currently in was vast, with six pillars, chains, and a large door rising above her on a raised stone platform at the end. What was more, she was not alone in the room. There were numerous guards, all aware and surprised by her presence. They pointed their rifles at her and fired. Lara quickly leaned behind a pillar as the sound of bullets whizzed past. She took the rifle from off her pack and fired at the attackers. A few fell down into the watery ground. She hid back behind the pillar, which was quickly becoming chipped away. All of a sudden, a loud chinking sound pierced her ears. She turned and saw a grenade fall into the water. She jumped to her right, just as the grenade went off. Soaked with water, she aimed and fired at the guards. BANG BANG BANG BANG! Four people gone. She jumped into the air and fired again. BANG BANG! Another one dead. She ducked behind a new pillar and reloaded the rifle. As she reached into her pocket to search for a magazine, she noticed that the room was silent. Lara slowly peeked around the pillar, but saw only bodies. She carefully replaced her rifle and waded through the water to the ladder leading to the door. She climbed the ancient stone ladder to the top of the platform and accidentally bumped into a corpse. A static sound came from it.

Lara's eyes widened. "_Putnam_," the static voice said, "_Putnam, do you copy? We heard a commotion in the puzzle room_._ Everything alright? Over_." Lara pushed the body over and pulled a short-wave radio from its belt.

"_Give me that_," a new voice said. It sounded like the leader. "_Putnam, this is Hightower_. _What the hell's going on? Over_."

"This is Lara Croft," Lara said into the radio, "and I would ask that you please stop telling your boys to shoot me. I do hate having to take human life." The radio was silent for a moment.

"_Who is this?_" the voice asked.

"Lara Croft," she said, flatly.

"The _Lara Croft? The one who found the lost Ark of the Covenant?_" the voice replied.

"The one and only," Lara quipped.

"_Listen, Ms. Croft_," the voice said, "_I'm Preston Hightower_. _It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance_."

"Indeed?" she said.

"_Ms. Croft, I'm going to ask that you leave this place while you can. I'm on a bit of a personal mission right now, and I would prefer that you not interfere_," Hightower said.

"I am too. I'm looking for that Statue of Jehovah. You haven't seen it by any chance, have you?" she asked, sarcastically. The radio was silent for a moment.

"_You don't realize what's so important about the Statue, do you Ms. Croft?_" Hightower said.

"It was one of King Solomon's treasures hidden during the Babylonian destruction. It's worth millions," Lara said.

"_Is that all you are concerned with, Ms. Croft? Money?_" Hightower said, his tone angry.

"Money _does_ make the world go round," Lara said.

"_Are you a religious woman?_"

"What has that got anything to do with our conversation?"

"_The Statue is more than money, Ms. Croft. It is the key to Paradise_," said Hightower.

"I don't understand," she said.

"_Of course you wouldn't. I'm going to tell you again: Leave, and I will spare your life_."

"For someone so religious, you seem fairly volatile," Lara said. Hightower sighed into the radio.

"_I'm sorry Ms. Croft. Goodbye_." The radio clicked off.


	12. 3'4: The Statue of Jehovah

**AN: **Well, here's Chapter Four. I've got the entire story done, but I don't know how often I'll be able to update since school starts in the next few days. Anyway, remember to read and review. If you review me, I'll review you. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **The Tomb Raider franchise, Lara Croft, Winston, and any other characters not of my own creation belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics. _

* * *

__Chapter Four_

_The Statue of Jehovah_

_5:45 A.M._

_Jerusalem, Israel _

Lara placed the radio onto her belt. "That was an interesting conversation," she said to herself. She walked through the open door, which had been kept open by a boulder. The path was now long and singular, with no branching paths. Tiles under her feet were sturdy and somewhat pristine looking. Lara walked down this path for a long time, until she was suddenly thrown to the ground by a tremendous bang and shock wave. She looked back and saw a smoldering crater were an explosive device had been. "C-4," she said. Looking farther into the crater, she saw a massive boulder wobbling precariously over the path. On the floor, several tiles seemed to had fallen or broken, revealing a dark abyss. Lara slowly got back up and stumbled a few feet when the boulder fell.

The path behind Lara began to collapse. She sprinted with all her strength away from the falling path, where tiles fell like waves into the abyss. She jumped and landed on the lip of the doorway and crawled inside.

"It's her!"

"Shoot her!"

"Oh God, now what?" Lara said, and saw a large group of men with guns, all aiming at her. She jumped behind a small rock and took out the rifle again. She got up and jumped into the air. Time seemed to slow down. BANG… BANG… BANG…. The gun seemed to fire in slow motion as well. Slump… Slump… Slump…. The bodies collapsed. Lara landed and kicked a man to the ground. His back on the ground, he raised his leg and kicked her hard in her kneecap, knocking her back. She pulled the trigger on her rifle, but with no bullets left, the gun did not fire. She slammed the hammer of it into the man's face, knocking him out.

Not having enough time to reload, Lara dropped the rifle and took out her pistols. BANG (Slump) BANG (Slump) BANG (Slump)! She jumped backwards and landed near a man with a grenade belt. She pistol whipped him, causing him to fall to the floor. Lara kicked his face, sending him into unconsciousness. She took the grenades from his belt and tossed one into a group of men. She ducked, and heard the grenade go off. There was a tremendous bang and screams of pain that made Lara shiver. She stood back up and saw that everyone was dead or badly wounded. "Sorry," she said sincerely, and proceeded to strap the rest of the grenades to her belt, and refresh her rifle ammo supply.

Lara looked around the room, searching for the exit. She found one a fair distance ahead, a golden light emitting from it. She ran up, and was immediately hit in the face by something hard. She staggered back, pressing her hand to her forehead. Although her vision was blurry from the pain, she could still make out the group leader. He had the short graying goatee and an ominous presence.

"Sorry about that," Preston Hightower said, wiping his hand on a handkerchief, "didn't see you there." He smiled evilly.

"You… bloody… josser," Lara spurted, her head feeling like it was about to split open.

"Once again, sorry about the fist," Hightower said. He snapped his fingers, and suddenly Lara was restrained by two large men. Hightower turned and walked back into the room he was in before he punched Lara, followed by a few guards and the men holding Lara. He pointed ahead to an ornate dais in an alcove at the end of the room, holding an emerald colored statue, about the size of a small vase. "That, Ms. Croft, is the Statue of Jehovah."

Lara's eyes widened. She couldn't believe the situation she was in. There was the treasure she traveled to the desert for, ended men's lives for, and she couldn't have it. She closed her eyes and shook her head. "Yes, so sorry about this. I just need it more than you," Hightower said.

"Why? What do you need it for?" Lara asked, angrily.

"I told you before. It's the key to Paradise and enlightenment," Hightower said.

"Ah, greed, power. You people always want that," she quipped.

"This is different," he said, irritated.

"Why didn't you take it? Did you just want to rub this in my face?" Lara asked.

"No, that was a bonus. In fact, it is written that you cannot take the Statue without its brother," Hightower said.

"'Brother?'" she questioned.

"It is physically impossible to take the Statue without its accessory. Legend states that the Statue of Jehovah's Brother is never separated by far, and therefore must be in this room," he said.

"Do you know what it is?" Lara asked, eyeing the Statue. She didn't believe this legend at all, but she thought she should humor Hightower until she could figure out an escape.

"No."

"Has anyone tried to take the Statue?"

"I told them not to. I don't know what would happen if someone tried to take it," Hightower said. Lara sighed. She looked around the room and saw a lip over the doorway, which was right beneath a large pile of rocks. She quickly thought of a plan, and was prepared to put it into action. Hightower turned back to the dais, giving Lara her chance. She stepped hard onto the guard's foot on her right, who quickly relinquished his grip on her. She punched the left guard with her free hand. The left guard let go, squealing in pain and covering his nose. She took out a pistol and pointed it at Hightower. The other guards raised their rifles to Lara. She side-stepped over to Hightower and held him tightly. "Get out of here or I will kill him!" Lara screamed at them. They seemed to waiver a little. "GO!" she yelled. They pointed their rifles downward and moved back into the other room.

"PATHETIC!" cried Hightower. Lara pushed him hard back out into the room with the others. She reached behind her and pulled out a grenade. She pulled out the pin, and threw it at the lip. There was a loud explosion, and the lip collapsed, sending a shower of rocks over the doorway, blocking their entrance. Lara smiled to herself. She ran over to the Statue and held her hands over it. She felt somewhat nervous after what Hightower said, but dismissed it. She breathed deeply, closed her eyes, and grabbed the Statue.

Lara opened her eyes and saw the Statue in her hands, and off the dais.

BANG.

Lara looked back and saw some guards firing their rifles through holes in the collapsed rock. She heard Hightower moan in anguish after seeing Lara with the Statue through one of these holes. She ducked behind the dais as bullets rained onto her. She placed the Statue carefully into her pack and looked around. There seemed to be no exit. A bullet barely missed her and hit the rock wall in front of her. A larger hole than a normal bullet would make was present. She kicked at the wall, and found a cistern. She crawled inside and saw a small tunnel going through the side. _An escape route for the Israelites_, she thought to herself. She crawled through the dark, cramped hole for a long time, the sounds of bullets eventually fading away. Turning a corner, she saw the path went on for a few more yards before a dull light. She crawled this path and came to the light. It was covered in mud. Kicking it away, she saw the morning sky. Judging by the sun, it was six or seven o'clock. She smiled, shading her eyes, not being used to such bright light. She looked down and saw a small path down a hill-side. She carefully climbed down and looked around. There was a rural path that lead to the city. She smiled triumphantly and made for her hotel.


	13. 3'5: The Statue's Brother

**AN:** Sorry this took so long to update. School just started back up and I've been very busy. Anyway, I hope to be back on my regular schedule and continue with Lara's adventure. Please enjoy, and remember that I'll review you if you review me!

**DISCLAIMER: **Tomb Raider and its character's belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics. _

* * *

__Chapter Five_

_The Statue's Brother_

_2:30 P.M._

_Croft Manor, Surrey, England_

Lara admired the small statue on her desk. Its emerald color shined brilliantly in the afternoon sun of Croft Manor. She had been home for two days, relaxing after the long, arduous adventure. Now that she had the Statue, she was faced with the problem of what to do with it. She could either keep it as a trophy, or give it to a museum. She wasn't really in need of the money, but she didn't think the law would be too fond of her keeping something of such historical significance such as the Statue of Jehovah. However, she risked her life several times to keep it, and therefore deserved it. She sighed and grabbed the Statue.

For the first time ever, she noticed a sound coming from within it. It was very, very small, but had the familiar tone of something inside a bottle. She shook it a little harder. Yes, there was definitely something inside it. "Winston!" she cried, "Winston, get my tools! I think I've found something!" In moments, Winston appeared with Lara's tool kit. She took a small, sharp tool and tapped lightly against the bottom of the Statue. "What is it, Lady Croft?" Winston asked.

"I'm not too sure," she replied. Lara poked the end of the Statue a few more times, but was still unable to make a hole. "Please get me a drill," she said, her tone irritated. She set the Statue back down, but placed it too close to the edge of her desk. Lara gasped and reached out vainly for the Statue. With a sickening crack, it broke in half. Lara shuddered and closed her eyes. "Lara! My God! Look!" Winston's voice said. Lara opened her eyes again and saw a sheet of papyrus sticking out from the Statue. Lara quickly grabbed tweezers from her tool kit and picked up the sheet. Taking another pair of tweezers, she carefully unfurled the papyrus. "What does it say?" asked Winston, excitedly.

"It's in ancient Hebrew. Let me see…." Lara said. Her eyes scanned the ancient document carefully for several minutes, then looked back at Winston. "Roughly translated," she said, "it says, '_the land lost lies waiting its reclamation. Of four rivers is its origin, to the west of marshland, and to the east of nothing. None shall enter but by the grace of Yahweh, or by those with thy map. Take heed of its dangers_.' An archaic map is at the bottom, but its been torn in half. Its last location is circled. It says, '_the land known to the Egyptians as, "Punt." Here beneath the great mountain lies the mines of the wise king, Solomon._' It seems that here would be the best place to start."

"'Start?'" said Winston.

"Yes. It would seem that Hightower was right about the Statue's brother. It must be this map. And this bit about the lost land certainly sparks my interest. I'm going to have to do research on Punt."

"Oh Lord, not again," Winston said, walking towards the door.

"Where are you going? We have some work to do," Lara said, smiling.

"To fix you a tea, and myself a brandy," he said. Lara chuckled.

It took a few days, but Lara eventually deducted the location of Punt was in fact northern Ethiopia. The mountain that the papyrus spoke of would be Mount Zuri, in the Ethiopian Highlands. It was the tallest mountain in Ethiopia, with a large crater in its center. Due to its incredible difficulty in reaching it, no one had been able to venture inside it. It was surrounded by dense jungles and rocky landscaping, making it impossible to reach by foot, and dense clouds from volcanic fumes proved too dangerous for helicopters to fly over. This would be a difficult journey, but Lara thought she could make it.

It was a day before she left, and a rain storm was falling on Croft Manor. Lara slept in her luxury bedroom, Winston in his. The whole house was quiet, except for the rhythmic tapping of the rain. Yet outside, an intruder was lurking.

He was of slender build, dressed all in black. He had a small backpack on, and a gun with a silencer in a holster at his side. He walked up to the front door of Croft Manor and pulled a strange tool out of his pack. He pressed a red button on the strange tool, which he knew sent out an electromagnetic pulse to the security system, immediately deactivating it. Putting the EMP away, he pulled out a small set of lock picks, and proceeded to intrude on Croft Manor. He slowly pushed open the door and walked inside. Quietly, he closed the door and looked around. An unlit fireplace beneath a large painting of a man and a woman, both with dark hair, was in the front of the room. To his left was a staircase, and to his right, a chamber with a large table, a television, chairs. A Renaissance era painting hung on the far wall. He walked up to this painting and inspected it. He did this for several minutes then pulled it off the wall and laid it down. A safe was engraved into the wall. He smirked and proceeded to unlock this as well. He reached inside and found the papyrus, carefully enclosed in an air-sealed case. The remains of the Statue were also encased in a small box. He placed these things into his backpack, and left Croft Manor.

* * *

Lara swore loudly. She had awoken groggy, but after she went downstairs to the safe, and found its contents empty, she became fully alert. "What is it?" Winston asked, still dressed in his nightgown.

"They're gone. The map and the Statue. Both gone," Lara fumed.

"What? How?" Winston asked, rushing over to the safe and searching it.

"Someone deactivated the security system and broke in. Hightower was behind this, I'm sure of it," she said.

"Should I phone the police?" Winston asked.

"No," Lara said, "just arrange for my plane. I'm leaving today."


	14. 3'6: Ascending

**AN:** Hello readers! I return for another installment in TR: G. As always, remember to read and review, and I will do the same to you.

**DISCLAIMER:** Tomb Raider and its characters belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics._

* * *

__Chapter Six_

_Ascending_

_6:23 P.M._

_Ethiopian Highlands, Ethiopia_

Even though she was an avid climber, Lara had trouble ascending the steep embankments of Mount Zuri. The ground beneath her would slip and slide at each step. Rocks would tumble dangerously close to her, some as large as watermelons. She had many cuts and bruises on her legs and arms, but she kept going, even with an occasional smile on her face at the sheer madness of it all.

Lara stopped on a small space of stable rock to catch her breath. She wiped sweat from her brow, and noticed a buzzing in her ear. She looked upward and saw a helicopter flying towards the mountain top. Lara grimaced; whoever was on that helicopter would not survive. Mount Zuri was a volcano. Clouds of ash swirled around the top of it, blocking the sight of the summit. The ash would get into the helicopter's rotors and clog them. The pilot would not be able to land safely (if he even landed at all) due to the unstable soil. Lara shook her head and continued on.

Every so often, Lara would see signs of vegetation. There were green trees scattered about, clinging to the loose soil. Flowers and grass appeared occasionally. Yet she saw dead trees, some broken and fallen, more often than the healthy varieties. Lara was looking at one of these trees when her feet dropped out. Looking around, she surmised that she had fallen into a small path. It had steep sides and a rather smooth trail. Looking down it, she noticed it continued down around a corner. _I wonder where this could be leading_, she thought to herself. Walking down it, she noticed the path seemed to rise. Occasionally, she would notice small rocks tumbling down this incline, slowly increasing their speed. Eventually, Lara was met with the end of it.

Where the path ended, a massive gap interrupted. The path had been broken apart, the rest on the side of a mountain some feet away. Lara paused; she would have to find another way. That's when she noticed rocky ledges on the side of the mountain. There were numerous ones, a few inadvertently giving her a path to return to the rest of the road. Lara backed up, then jumped onto a lip.

Like the rest of the mountain, the lip of the cliff side was unstable. As soon as she had grasped it, it gave way. She plummeted several feet, grabbing a second ledge before she fell deeper into the gap. She only had one hand on the ledge, and heaved heavily to put her other hand onto the rest. Getting a footing, she shimmied across this ledge until she came to an unbroken piece of the first lip. Lara launched herself upward, her feet running up the side while she grasped the first lip. Eventually having a good hold, she shimmied towards her right, occasionally dodging small rock falls, until she came to the rest of the road. She leapt upwards, grabbed it, then pulled herself up.

_So that's what happened to the helicopter_, Lara thought. The sleek black metal of the helicopter was stained with mud and ash, the tail rotor idly spinning. It had landed on a tilt, the skis having twisted and contorted. Flecks of glass were scattered around it, some stained with a shiny red liquid. Lara sighed sadly for the poor souls in the doomed vessel then continued on the road. It no longer had the walls like in the previous path, except at the very end, where the road had broken off. Looking around, she saw the road stopped at another tall, dark mountain wall. In front of it was a dead tree with long, thick branches and trunk. Near this tree was a deep incision in the rock wall, wide enough to fit a large car. Above this was the remains of a thick crank. Lara was in the middle of hypothesizing what this could mean when she felt cold metal against her back.

"Hands up!" a demanding voice ordered. Lara raised her arms.

"Were you from the helicopter?" she asked, her tone sociable.

"Shut up," he said.

"Just trying to make friendly conversation," Lara said. The unseen hostage-taker grabbed her right arm and twisted it painfully behind her back, then forced her towards the helicopter. He threw her against the side, giving Lara the chance to look at the man. He was wearing a cracked helmet with muddy goggles on it, and had a suit covered with mud and blood. He looked very tired.

"Base, this is Chopper Four. Our helicopter is down on the southwest side of the summit," he said into a radio, which also had flecks of mud on it. "I have taken Croft hostage. Please copy, over." There was dead silence.

"I think your radio is broken," she said, her arms still over her head.

"Shut up," the mercenary said again, then continued his transmission. Lara heard a crack from below her. She turned her head and saw large fissures beneath the helicopter that seeped outward towards herself and the mercenary. There were dim red glows coming out from beneath these cracks. Her eyes widened; they were on top of a chamber of magma. She looked back at the man, still trying to call for help, and said, "Listen to me. We're standing on unstable rock. Beneath us is a chamber of magma. This rock is going to give way in a few moments, and we're all going to fall into the chamber."

"What are you babbling about?" he said, looking up from his radio.

"We're going to die if we don't get out of here," Lara said urgently.

"Right, which is why I'm calling for help," the man said, his tone irritated, and talking like he was trying to tell something obvious to a five-year-old.

"No, you don't understand. Unless we get out of here in the next few seconds we're going to--"

The loud sound of cracking interrupted her. Lara and the mercenary looked towards the helicopter and saw a massive crater forming, swallowing it up. Lara broke into a sprint away from the helicopter and towards the tree. She heard the horrifying groan of the helicopter as it fell into the lava pit, followed by the terrifying scream of the mercenary as he followed. Lara jumped and grabbed the thick branch and began spinning on it like a gymnast. On every rotation she would see a blur of dark red and orange as the roots of the tree hovered over the ever-growing pit. Lara jumped and grabbed onto the rocky mountainside and quickly climbed it, feeling this rock was giving way too. She eventually made it to the top and ran away from the side, noticing that with each footfall rocks tumbled behind her. She leapt onto a large bolder and sat atop it, gasping for breath. Behind her was a massive heap of rubble and craters where land had simply fallen into the mountain. Coughing a few times and resting for a few minutes, she climbed off the rock and proceeded onwards towards the summit.

The sun had gone down and the moon had come up. Using faint beams of moonlight, she navigated the treacherous path of the summit. Fog surrounded her every few feet, making her go in circles a few times. Eventually, however, she came to her entrance. In front of her was a massive crater, leading down into the mountain. She had reached the top of Mount Zuri. She smiled in relief, then proceeded to set up climbing gear so that she could descend. While doing this, Lara noticed broken slabs of concrete and brick circled the hole. Pondering this, she strapped on the proper equipment, then began descending into the mouth of the mountain.

Lighting a flare, she noticed how the inside of the crater was oddly formed, in which there was a slanting drop, followed by a sheer fall, then another slanting drop. Beyond there, she could not see. She slowly went down until she felt a violent jerk. She looked up and saw the rope sliding downwards. Within seconds, she heard the quiet chink of metal, which meant that the anchor she had placed had given way. Dropping the flare, she fell downwards onto the first slant. The rock here was slippery and unsound, which gave Lara's grip no purchase. She slid down the incline quickly, her pony tail flying behind her, pebbles hitting her. She fruitlessly grasped for something to save her, but to no avail. She flew off the slope and began falling down the large drop to the second slant. Reaching out, she was able to save herself by grabbing the sheer wall, which proved more stable then the first slope. She held on tightly, catching her breath. _I don't think I'll be trusting climbing gear again_, she thought to herself. Looking around her, she saw a small ledge she could grab beneath her. She leapt and snatched it, small rocks falling around her, similar to her climbing exploits of earlier. Below her was another ledge, which she proceeded to grab again. This continued for the next few minutes until she was only a foot above the second slope. She leapt from this and slid, her pose similar to a surfer, along the slope, until she came to the final small drop.

She jumped from the final slope into soft ground. It wasn't mud, but it felt cushy, almost like freshly dried wax. Lara looked around her and noticed this ring of ground stood over another large hole. She lightly kicked a stone into the hole, and heard the splash of water. She lit a flare and looked into the hole. Sure enough, she saw her reflection in water. What surprised her, however, was a large, distant shadow that stood in the pool. Lara dove into the cool water and resurfaced to see something surprising.

A large stone tower sat like the rod of a sundial in the water. It had many small turrets and windows, which had large planks and cranks that emitted from them. Lara found this very surprising and curious, and would have entered it, had she found an entrance. Swiveling her head to her right, she found an archway on a ledge of the pool. She climbed out, and noticed the ledge came from a winding staircase that was connected to the layer of ground she had just occupied. Lara sighed. _Well, at least my way was more interesting_, she thought. Turning back to the archway, she noticed something written in archaic Hebrew:

_Take heed, all ye who enter King Solomon's Mines_


	15. 3'7: Descending

**AN:** To all my readers, I'm sorry I haven't been updating as frequently as I have been during the summer. School is now the biggest part of my life right now, and it is very difficult to find the time to update. This is also why I haven't been reviewing anyone. But, I have enough time right now to update and review. I should warn you that my updates won't be getting any more common than about this time, not until Thanksgiving. I'm sorry, but school must come first.

Now that that is out of the way, I will always review anyone who reviews me, even if it takes a while. Now, please enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider and Lara Croft belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics. _

* * *

_

_Chapter Seven_

_Descending_

_1:42 A.M._

_Innards of Mount Zuri, Ethiopia_

Taking very little heed of the warning, Lara ventured forth into the archway. It led to a staircase that overlooked a great hall, with ancient mining tools and chains. Large bins of rock were scattered about, one sitting on a lift that led up to Lara's level. She climbed down the staircase and looked at the rows of chains that lined the walls and outcroppings of rock. "Keep the slaves from escaping their work," she said to herself. This hall led to another archway, this one more reminiscent of mines of the present. Chains were everywhere, along with sledgehammers and axes. The mines seemed to had been a very brutal place to work. Lara was nearing the end of the tunnel when the ground shook. She steadied herself against the wall as rocks fell down around her. Then, just as soon as the earthquake started, it stopped.

"Volcanoes," she said, exasperated. She exited this tunnel and came out to a large, rectangular hall. Two large outcroppings, that seemed to had been carved there, were situated with one on each side, the one on her left higher than the one on her right. The rest of the hall led upward, but the stairway Lara could've taken was blocked by slippery soil and dirt. _There have been earthquakes before_, she thought to herself. She looked to her right and grabbed the ledge. She climbed onto it, then jumped onto the ledge to her left. She shimmied along this ledge, then jumped onto the rest of the hall.

She continued walking down this hallway, passing bridges above her that were either intact or broken. She eventually stumbled onto a trail that lead to an obstructed entrance. Lara sighed and looked around. A chain was situated near one of the entrances above her. She grabbed it and climbed. The metal was cold and slimy, but this didn't stop her. She eventually swung across to the entrance and walked inside.

Lara had apparently come upon the prison. Brown skeletons lined the walls, some in cramped cages. As she walked forward, the feeling of warm, musty air whipped past her. She looked behind and saw the entrance had shut. Just then, the ground trembled again. It was the fourth time since she had entered the mines. "I really hope that doesn't mean what I think it means," she said, fearing that the volcano would erupt soon. Returning to the matter at hand, she looked around the room. There were three pads around the room, all at great distances. There were also two cages. "Too easy," she said to herself. She grabbed one cage (which held a deceased occupant) and pushed it over to a pad. Once it was on top, the pad did nothing. Furrowing her brow, she examined the cage and the pad. On top of the cage was a symbol. It had two lines, and an _S_ like shape in the middle. She removed the cage from the pad and examined the pad. This pad had two intersecting circles, with an _8_ shape in the middle. Lara examined the other pads and cage. The other cage had the _8 _design, and one of the other pads had the _S_ design. The third pad was at the farthest corner of the room, and had the design of something reminiscent of a human foot. Lara fixed the cages and pads, which lowered slightly. She heard a crank at the exit, but it did not lift.

Now Lara was faced with a dilemma: where was the other cage? She looked high and low, but could not find it. She went back over and examined the pad. It definitely had the design of a human foot. Throwing caution to the wind, she gingerly placed her right foot on it. The pad lowered. The door opened, but Lara could not get to it. Though the pad had lowered, two thin but strong slabs of concrete had come out of the floor and trapped her foot. To make matters worse, the ceiling started lowering, with large spikes appearing out of the holes in it. Lara tugged at her foot, but to no avail. She tried to lunge forward towards the still-open door, but she could not get out of her trap. The spikes were only a few feet above her. She was trapped!


	16. 3'8: Escaping

**AN:** I'm back! Today we continue Lara's adventure through Mount Zuri on the quest for the map. I really enjoyed this chapter, because it is Lara's first real encounter with the supernatural. As always, remember my review policy. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **Lara Croft and Tomb Raider belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics._

* * *

_

_Chapter Eight_

_Escaping_

_6:23 A.M._

_Innards of Mount Zuri, Ethiopia_

Thinking quickly, Lara took out her pistols and rapidly fired into the concrete. After firing her last round, she pulled out her foot and sprinted towards the door. She leapt out of it, just as the spikes began crushing the cages and the prison's occupants.

Lara gasped for breath as she replaced her weapons and wiped off any excess concrete from her boot. After a few moments, she regained her composure and stood. She had walked only a few feet when there was another tremor. Now on a thin bridge, had no where to go. A massive boulder came down and split the bridge in-half. Lara lost her footing and began sliding down the collapsing bridge. When she had landed, she leapt for cover as the rest of the bridge fell and shattered into millions of pieces. After the earthquake ceased, Lara lit a flare and looked around. There was no ladder or foot-holds to get back up to her path. She searched her current location and found another archway. She walked down its tunnel for several minutes until she came to the exit. She climbed out of it and saw a large crater in a wall above her, connected to a bridge. Lara judged it was from a bomb, due to the charred remains. Ropes dangled from the sides. She went up to inspect them when one gave a tug. She looked up and saw a mercenary with a shotgun. "HOLD IT!" he cried. Lara took out her pistols and fired at the man.

BANG BANG BANG!

The man fell towards her feet, dead before he hit the ground. Lara took his shotgun and ammo and strapped it to her pack, placing the shells in there and her pockets as well. Suddenly, there was another earthquake. Lara was getting tired but used to these, and barely flinched as the blast hole was recovered by debris.

Lara turned right and saw a new passageway. Small rocks surrounded it; the previous earthquake must've unsealed the passage. She stalked forward cautiously, and came into a large antechamber. Elephant statues, seraphim, and a man dressed in traditional Hebrew garments stood amongst the chamber. Lara inspected the statue and read, in archaic Hebrew, that it was the founder of the mines, King Solomon himself. He was adorned with gold, a gilded crown, and a silver sword that still shone brightly. Lara inspected the sword and noticed the reflection of a sealed archway. She looked behind her and saw said archway. It was different than the others. It was large and ornate, with a perfectly smooth stone acting as a door. There was another inscription at the top:

_For The King_

Lara raised her eyebrows and walked up to the stone. With great strength she heaved it aside and gasped. The room was a massive chamber, with elaborate chairs and statues. Gold and diamonds were in the walls and scattered about on the floor. Also on the floor was something that made Lara's eyes widen: two skeletons of knights. Judging by their shields they had been knights of the Knights Templar. Each knight had a sword in their hand, but one knight's sword had broken off at the hilt. It looked as if it had destroyed in battle.

As she continued to inspect the room, she noticed massive holes in the walls. They were wide enough to fit fifteen people, and as tall as houses. Lara could find no reason for these, and so continued on. Suddenly, the sight of a pedestal caught her eye. She ran up to it, but grimaced at what she saw.

The pedestal was empty. It had a stand on it, like one to hold papers or books, but this was all there was. An inscription was etched onto it in Middle French. "_We have taken the holy artifact of King Solomon_," Lara read out loud, "_Our brothers will be very satisfied_._ We believe we shall be called to the pagan land of Al-Andalus to reclaim it in the name of the Lord_. _We pray for a safe journey_. _Hopefully the Map of Man's Lost Land shall bring morale to our brothers_. _I--_"

Lara knew Al-Andalus was modern day Spain. _I do enjoy Spain_, she thought to herself. She looked back at the note and noticed how it just stopped. It seemed very strange, but Lara left it alone. She began walking out of the chamber when she heard a loud groan. She whipped out her pistols and searched the room. There was nothing. She began walking again, her pistols still in her hands, when a loud blast and roar echoed around the room. She turned slowly and saw the most horrifying thing.

It like something out of an Edgar Allan Poe poem: a giant worm-like creature, with a massive mouth, containing rows of razor-sharp teeth, was creeping out of one of the holes in the wall. It had two eyes, the one on it's right was, however, closed. Lara could faintly see the dull shine of steel. _And now we know how the knight lost his sword_. The worm roared ferociously and looked around the chamber. Lara slowly aimed at the worm and crept backwards towards her exit. Every muscle in her body shook with terror. Her eyes were wide and her mouth was bone dry. Then, to her horror, she stepped on something that made a sharp cracking sound. She looked and saw that she had stepped on the leg of one of the knights. The Conqueror Worm roared and launched itself forward. Lara dove aside and fired.

BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG!

The worm roared in pain and crashed into Lara's exit. Stones fell down, blocking the door and dazing the worm. She quickly hid behind a pillar and replaced her pistols. She whipped out her shotgun and pumped it quietly. The worm came right up close to the pillar. Lara could hear it's breath. It roared loudly again and slammed into the pillar. Lara fell to the ground, her back aching from the attack. She jumped back up and repeatedly fired shells into the worm. Black blood splattered the floor. She jumped into the air when the worm lunged at her and slammed into a wall, while Lara crashed into a pile of gold and diamonds. The worm seemed dazed, shaking it's head around. Lara jumped out and searched for an exit. There was an archway above her with a chain near it. All she had to do was climb up it….

The worm roared again. Lara turned and saw it in an attack position. She pulled the trigger on the shotgun… but it didn't fire. She was out of ammo. The worm lunged for her. Thinking quickly, she grabbed the barrel of the shotgun, ran up to the worm, and rammed the handle into the injured eye. It shrieked in pain, which gave Lara the chance she needed. She leapt onto the worm and quickly crawled up it's back. She pulled out her pistols and fired into the worm's skull. The worm shook its head in pain, shaking Lara along with it. It gave out one final cry and collapsed to the ground, dead. Lara jumped off and replaced her pistols. She watched as the tail of the worm flopped around before it crashed into the wall. A rancid-smelling hot air swam over her from out of the black hole. It gradually grew redder and redder, until hot lava poured out. "Oh no," Lara said. She turned and ran up to the chain, then began climbing it. The lava filled the chamber in moments, and began following her up the chain. Lara swung over to the archway, then ran down the winding tunnels.

She eventually came out onto the party of mercenaries that had caused the explosion. They seemed too busy to react to her presence, as they quickly packed their gear and rushed around for a ladder that hung from the ceiling. It was right in front of another large archway, with a smaller arch next to it. The whole cave began to shake. Lara quickly ran over to a wall and began to scale it. She eventually made it to the smaller archway, and watched as the lava poured into the room. Just as she assumed, the mercenaries were all too busy fighting over who got to leave first, and could not escape the lava. The ladder burned and fell into the hot lake. Lara turned and sprinted down the tunnel, taking many twists and turns. Eventually, she came to a small room with two chains. One chain was coming up from the floor, and was being held by a switch. Another chain was a continuation from the first chain, and had a large box that emitted a yellow glow of diamonds and gold. Lara looked back behind her and saw the tunnel begin to blaze with an orange light.

Looking upward, Lara could see an exit high in wall. She grabbed the first chain and took out her pistol. She held tightly onto the chain, then fired at the switch. It broke, sending the counterweight of the treasure box towards the floor, and launching Lara into the air. The musty air made her eyes tear, but she felt exhilarated. The chain lurched to a stop near the entrance. Lara jumped and landed inside it. Beneath her, the lava was filling the small room. She holstered her pistol and sprinted down the tunnel, until she finally came to a large chamber with a dead end. Above her were three large ledges, a chain, and, miraculously, a large hole in the ceiling that led to the outside world.

Lara turned back around and saw lava begin to pour into the room from her entrance, and from the walls themselves. She jumped up to a ledge, then jumped backward onto another, then did the same to the third. Just a few feet away, a stream of lava poured out of the wall she was on. She jumped onto the chain and began launching herself forward. The lava was coming close to her feet. She finally gave one last lurch and jumped. She grabbed the edge of the hole and pulled herself upwards and out of the chamber.

She quickly ran through the green jungle and finally stopped at a waterfall. Lara looked behind her and saw great gray clouds rising from within Mount Zuri. Orange lava flew out of the pores of the volcano. It was an awesome sight. Lara absorbed it for a few moments then continued on her escape. Eventually, she stumbled onto an abandoned camp. She walked up to a table under a tent and radioed for Winston to arrange for transportation out of Ethiopia.

"_Did you find the rest of the map_?" Winston asked.

"No, but I think it might be in Spain," Lara said. She heard rustling behind her, but when Lara turned around, she saw no one.

"_Alright_, _I've got someone who can get you out of there_. _Do you remember Anaya Imanu_?" Winston said. Lara smiled.


	17. 3'9: Nobody Expects

**AN:** I'm sorry this chapter is really short. I guess I was low on creative juices when I it. As always, remember to read and review. I you review me, I review you. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider, Lara Croft, and Winston belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics.

* * *

_Chapter Nine_

_Nobody Expects..._

_4:14 P.M._

_Croft Manor, Surrey, England_

"Spain you say?"

"Yes."

Lara and Winston were currently enjoying a late lunch a few days after Ethiopia, and were also talking about what the future had in store for Lara Croft. "Would you mind going over your plan once more, Ms. Croft?" Winston asked.

"The Knight's writing said that he and his troops would be heading to Al-Andalus, which is current day Spain. According to studies, the Knights Templar did indeed visit Spain during the Reconquista. Spanish scholars have said that when they came, they left behind some trinkets during battle. One was said to be a very holy object. Some think this is the Holy Grail, but my guess is that that object is the rest of the map."

"And what happened to it?"

"It is guessed that it was given to a monastery, and then turned over to the Spanish Inquisition," Lara said.

"'The Spanish Inquisition?' I never would have guessed," Winston said, pouring coffee into his cup.

"Well," Lara said, "you know what they say. Nobody expects the--"

"Oh please, Ms. Croft. No jocularities at the moment," Winston said, taking a drink of his beverage. Lara laughed.

She always considered Winston to be a father-like figure. Whenever her real father had been on excavations, she always had Winston there for guidance. When she lost her father, she had someone there to help console her, to be there for help. Even though he had aged, Lara could still imagine him as the kindly, 50 year old man she had known him as when she was a child.

"When do you plan on leaving then?" he asked.

"As soon as possible. I want to get in touch with Isabel Dominguez before I get there. I have a feeling I'm going to need help," Lara said.


	18. 3'10: En La Casa de La Justicia

**AN:** Well, here we are again. This chapter is longer, you'll all be happy to know, and I always really liked it. I tried to get the Spanish right, but I am taking Spanish III at my school so it should be right. As always, I review you if you review me. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider and Lara Croft belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics._

* * *

_

_Chapter__ Ten_

_En La Casa de La Justicia_

_Seville, Spain_

_9:28 A.M._

The weather was unseasonably chilly and gray. "You said the it was going to be nice," Lara said as she looked out over the city of Seville.

"You can never trust the weather," said a lush, sweet voice with a thick Spanish accent. Lara turned and saw a dark haired woman with soft eyes and features. She was wearing a white blouse with a thin jacket and jeans. "No you can't, can you Isabel?" Lara said, smiling.

Lara Croft had arrived in Spain just the day before, and was getting reacquainted with her friend, Isabel Dominguez, a friend she had made when she had once spent a holiday in Spain with her father. Over dinner that night she had told her of her plans of finding the rest of the Map of Jehovah. "And you believe it to be here in Seville, _sí_?" she had asked.

"Yes. I think it is was given to the Spanish Inquisition, after all such a holy item would be highly regarded to the Spanish, and would be held in one of its chief cities, such as Seville," Lara said that night.

So, here was Lara Croft, preparing for yet another adventure. She pulled on a light navy blue jacket. She zipped it up over her blue top and placed her pistols into her pack. "There's something I didn't ask last night," said Isabel. "Where do you think the Inquisition quarters is right now?"

"Somewhere close to the Seville Cathedral, but hidden, as it was believed to be the harshest and cruelest of all the Inquisition's headquarters: _La Casa de la Justicia_," Lara said.

"_Dios mío_, Lara! You must be mistaken," Isabel said, "the place is a myth."

"Isabel, in the past month I've seen many things considered to be myth. I'm not ruling out its non-existence, but it wouldn't surprise me if it was real," Lara said. Isabel sighed. "Now," Lara continued, "is there a place near there that has been sealed up? Perhaps in the Cathedral, or--"

"There is an alleyway near by it. In it is a very, very old wall that was sealed up a few hundred years ago. They call it _Puerta del Perdón_," Isabel said.

"Sounds like _La Casa de la Justicia_ to me," Lara said, "let's go."

It took them a long time to get to the Seville Cathedral, due to it being _Semana Santa_. As the parade of hooded men passed by, Lara and Isabel carefully weaved their way through the crowds and into the alleyway by the Cathedral. What Isabel had forgotten to tell Lara about, however, was that the alley itself was sealed by a concrete wall. Lara limberly climbed over it, and helped Isabel onto the other side. They walked up to the sealed wall and examined it. "Isabel, _dame_ _la palanca_,_ por favor_," Lara said, pointing over to a crowbar next to several boxes. Isabel went over and gave it to Lara. "_Gracias_," said Lara. She held the crowbar tightly in her fists and stuck it in between the plaster. She heaved heavily several times, until she finally broke away part of the brick. Inside, Lara could see a long slope into pitch darkness. She slipped the crowbar onto her pack, then reached inside it and strapped her pistols on. She turned to Isabel and said, "_Gracias por la ayuda_."

"_De nada_," Isabel said. Lara looked at the hole and then turned back to Isabel.

"I best be off," she said, "wish me luck." Lara turned and stepped into the hole.

"¡_Vaya con Dios_!" Isabel said. Lara relinquished her hold onto the wall and began sliding down the slope.

The wind was surprisingly cold as it whipped through Lara's hair and face, making her very glad she had her jacket. The slope seemed to go on forever, until the floor finally leveled out. She looked behind her and saw the small patch of light that was her entrance. She turned back and stepped off of the ramp onto something sharp and crackly. Lara lit a flare and stifled a scream.

Bones. Thousands of them lining the floor and walls. Lara shook herself and regained composure. _It seems I'm in…catacombs_, she thought nervously. Even though Lara was not one to be frightened easily, the catacombs shook her to the core. She began walking slowly, careful not to step on more skeletons. The drip-drop of water was monotonous and irritating. The cold caused Lara to shiver constantly. "If I get a cold from this…." she trailed off. The eyeless sockets of the skulls stared down at her sinisterly. The squeak of rats reverberated against the bones, as if they themselves were sniggering and giggling maniacally. Eventually, she made it to a doorway out into a chamber. Lara turned and looked back at the exit of the catacombs. Above the archway was written, _Los No Creyentes_. "'The Non-Believers,'" Lara read out loud.

Her voice echoed around the hall. She looked around and saw a tall post. There was a set of chains attached to it. The word '_Azortes_' was written on the post. _For whippings_, Lara thought. She continued out of the room and walked down a long stone hallway. It was eerily quiet, with the squeak of a rat occasionally being heard. Lara passed various instruments of torture: a rack, known as the _Potro_, chains that hung from the ceiling and sat limp upon the floor, and bloody operating tables, with evil looking sickle-like tools still hanging from the wall or on the floor. Eventually, Lara made it out of the wing of torture and into a massive room. It was wide open, connected by a wooden bridge that stood over several stories of platforms and rooms. To Lara's left was a massive citadel, that led upward at odd angles from the bottom level of the room to the ceiling and beyond. Lara slowly walked up to the drawbridge, and began to hear voices from a few stories below her.

Lara carefully looked over the side and saw two mercenaries socializing. They were talking about when the next shipment of supplies would be in, which Lara gathered meant that they hadn't been in Spain long. _Hightower's men_, she thought, remembering the rustle of brush from Ethiopia. Quietly taking out her pistols, she slowly walked across the bridge to the other side of the room. The bridge was very old, and it was a miracle it stayed together under Lara's weight. It creaked a few times, which always made her hold her breath, waiting for a mercenary to fire at her. Eventually, she made it to the other side, and began to walk down the hallway.

The hallway was dark and damp. The wet stones beneath her made squelching noises with each step. It twisted and turned, passing old doors and ancient architecture. Soon, Lara made it to another gap. She grabbed onto a decorative ledge on the wall and shimmied across it to the other side of the room. However, Lara had not noticed that this led to a long slope, and so when she landed, she began tumbling downward at a very intense speed, eventually flying off and onto the stone floor at the bottom. She moaned loudly, rubbing her sore head. Lara looked around the room and saw a large pipe that dripped water, and a hole that seemed to lead out of the room and had at one time been connected to the pipe. It was jagged, which she guessed meant it was placed there by an accident. Lara crawled into it and crept down it for several minutes, eventually reaching the largest room she had been in. It was flooded with water, but seemed to have a stairwell going down it, but Lara could not tell where. She jumped into the water, took a deep breath, and dove under.

The water was temperate, though seemed dirty. Lara swam further and further down, passing the ancient and broken stairwell. It led down into a courtyard, which had several doors, all sealed. Lara's lungs were growing painful; she needed fresh air. She swam up to a thick, rusty, metal door with a brass lever next to it. She tried to pull it, but it did not give. Air bubbles began to leak from her mouth. She took out her crowbar and swung down onto it. The door opened, pulling Lara inside the room. She quickly exhaled, and took a few deep breaths before the room flooded. She noticed a gold key tied to a leather strap that was sinking lazily to the floor. She took the key and swam out of the room.

With renewed oxygen, Lara was able to better examine the courtyard. It had three doors, one for each wall, and a massive fourth one, which bore the image of a cross. Next to it was a similar brass lever. Once more she hit it with the crowbar, and once more the door opened. She swam inside and breathed freely once again. This room had a stairwell that led up to a hallway. Lara let the water carry her halfway up, before the rise slowed, and she was able to climb the stairs.

Lara shook the excess water off herself and walked through the hallway. It led out into a large hall, with thousands of holes in the floor, and a thin balance beam that jutted out of the floor and twisted around in sharp turns. The beam had three forks, one leading to Lara, another leading to a large lock, and yet another, far away from the lock, was a giant metal entrance with two doors. A gold cross was emblazoned upon each door, and above the entrance was a large sign that read '_La Catedral del Cristo_.' "There it is," she said to herself. She was about to take a step up to the door, but stopped herself quickly. She examined the floor and noticed that all the holes were in massive square tiles. Lara kicked a small stone onto one of the tiles, and immediately jets of fire came out of each hole. "This complicates things a bit," she said. She then looked back at the beam in front of her. Holes lined the beam as well. Lara lightly tapped the beam with her foot, but there were no flames. She sighed, having to forego this threat and stepped onto the beam.

The beam seemed thinner now that she was on it. Carefully, she walked along it. Every so often, she would lose her balance and almost fall, but she would always be able to catch herself. She made her way through the sharp twists and turns, and eventually to the large lock. Lara took out the gold key and placed it into the lock. She turned it, and was immediately caught off guard by intense heat and sound. She turned and saw giant plumes of flame coming out of not only the floor, but out of the beam as well. Yet in the distance, she could see the doors of the cathedral open. _But how to get there_, she thought to herself. Lara watched the jets of fire in the beam, and noticed how they would rise up and drop, like a wave. After watching the pattern for some time, she decided it was now or never. She made her way as fast across the beam as possible, being chased by the growing fire. She felt her pony tail singe several times, her boots becoming gooey and sticky against the beams. She took a sharp turn and jumped, landing in the doorway.

Immediately the fire stopped. Lara looked behind and saw that, besides the blackened carbon on the floor and beams, the room seemed perfectly normal. Looking down, she realized that this was because of a pad beneath her. She pulled a pew over to the pad, keeping it depressed. She sighed, finally being able to rest. _No_, she suddenly thought, _keep going_. Lara gulped and looked around. She was in a massive cathedral with high ceilings, and pews that seemed to go on forever. Yet at the very end, beneath a large, golden crucifix, was a table. And on that table, sealed in an emerald statuette of Jesus, was an ancient sheet of papyrus. Lara smiled and ran up to it. Finally, the rest of the map. Taking a breath of hesitance before she broke an image of Christ, she slammed it onto the table. She picked up the map, looked down at the end and finally found the proverbial 'X Marks the Spot' of treasure maps. Quickly and carefully placing it in her pack, she spared no thought other than of the map's end. The idea of the location was absurd. It couldn't be right. The place didn't exist. How was it possible that--

"Well done Ms. Croft. Thank you for leading us here, now please give me that map."

Lara turned and saw the shorter man from Jerusalem, Hightower's right-hand-man. He was dressed in a wetsuit, along with his group of mercenaries. They must've followed her. "Who the hell are you?" she asked, angrily.

"My name is Elton Kersey. It is a pleasure to make--"

"You're not getting this map," said Lara, now aiming her pistols at Kersey and his group of mercenaries.

"Ah," said Kersey, with a voice that was smooth, but resonant, "let us not resort to violence."

"How did you find me?" Lara asked, not even blinking so that she could stay trained on the group of men.

"While you were on the bridge, one of our men saw you and notified us. Thank you for stopping that nasty fire problem, that was very kind of you."

"You will not get this map from me," Lara said.

"Very well," Kersey said. He lifted up a gas mask from his belt and strapped it to his face, then commanded the rest of his team to do the same. Lara's fists tensed. Her fingers were gently squeezing the triggers. "Again, thank you for the map," he said, his voice muffled. Just then, one of the mercenaries pulled out a grenade and threw it at Lara. Before she could leap out of the way, it fired in a white blast, blinding her. She could hear smoke ushering from the canister. Lara coughed as her eyes watered. "Get it, she's almost down!" she heard a voice say. Lara involuntarily dropped her pistols and fell to the ground. She coughed one last time, and slipped into unconsciousness.


	19. 3'11: The Pit and the Pendulum

**AN:** Happy New Year everyone! Here again with the first chapter of 2008. I hope you enjoy it. As always, remember my policy: you review me, I review you. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider and Lara Croft belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics._

* * *

Chapter Eleven_

_The Pit and the Pendulum_

_Time __Unknown_

_La Casa de la Justicia, __Spain_

Her vision was blurry. The room was dark. Lara's head throbbed as she laid on a very hard, wooden surface. Dull aches and pains coursed through her arms, accompanied with a harsh itching, like rope. She coughed loudly, and heard it echo distantly. She looked around the chamber and noticed that it was square, with flat stone walls. The floor beneath her seemed to be of uneven flagstone, with a large pit in the middle. In the pit, Lara heard loud squeaks of rats. She shuddered; rats were Lara's least favorite animals. She leaned her head back, exasperated, when she noticed that she was strapped down to a large table, with a mysterious meat upon a stool to her left. It looked raw. In the darkness, she noticed a small card that wished Lara would like her final meal, signed by Kersey. "Bastard," she said.

A loud screeching sound, like stone against stone, pierced her ears and made them ring. She looked up and saw the image of Death, with a scythe that looked very realistic. That's when, to her horror, Lara noticed it _was_ a real scythe. It appeared out of a pitch black hole, right where the cane of Death's scythe would connect with the blade. It began to swing side-to-side in long, graceful arcs. Lara watched it, her eyes following each motion. It made horrible creaking noises, the wind whipping with it causing horrible whooshing sounds.

Slowly, the pendulum scythe swung down towards Lara. She could only watch in horror, her brain still too fuzzy to think of an escape plan. Just a few more feet! The thought of Winston and her family passed through her mind. It was so close now! Paraíso came to her, and the thought of all her friends dying. She would be next! Their voices echoed her name. Her heartbeat raced like the hare in the old fable. An orange light flashed before her eyes, and the demonic roar of the Paraíso monster whispered in her ear. She began to hyperventilate. The scythe was coming closer, the stale wind whistling past and hitting Lara like a child creating waves with their hand in a pool. She remembered her mother's face when she pulled the sword from the stone. It now burned into her mind. Her vision broke and distorted as tears welled in her eyes. Her father's gentle yet sad smile in Egypt. She would be with her parents and friends soon. Guilt would be relieved momentarily. Somewhere, seemingly far away, a rat squeaked. Lara blinked as an idea came into her mind. She pulled her left arm out of a cord of rope. Her jacket having been gone when she awoke, there was nothing to protect the skin, causing her arm to throb painfully, growing red and bloody. She grabbed the meat, feeling its cold juices seep out of its pores and onto her fingers, and slathered it onto the table as close to the pit as possible. The squeaks grew louder. She held back a girlish squeal while rats scurried out of the pit and up to the table. She moaned loudly, trying not to scream and scare them off. She quickly rubbed the meat around the cords of rope she could reach, then threw it to her feet. They climbed onto her limbs, and she twitched involuntarily as she felt their tiny claws dig in through fabric and flesh. The rats began to chew through the rope, tasting the juices of raw meat. Lara looked back up and saw the scythe swinging lower, positioned over her stomach. She watched in horror as a rat stood in the scythe's path, and was quickly cut down in a squeak of pain. "Oh my God," she whimpered quietly. She wiggled her limbs quickly, throwing some rats aside. Yes! Her feet were free! Now her arms were too! "AAAARRRGGGHHH!" she screamed. Lara looked at her stomach and saw the blue fabric cut through and a bloody cut emerging. She quickly rolled off the table, just as the scythe would've cut a fatal blow to Lara.

The scythe retreated quickly, but Lara didn't notice. She pressed her hands to her stomach, trying to slow the bleeding. She ripped off a piece of top and pressed it to the wound. She then noticed several tiny cuts all over her body. "Oh God," she moaned again. The cut was incredibly painful, and she began to fear infection. Yet, for the moment, she was alive. She smiled over her triumph, knowing that with each success she would grow stronger both physically and emotionally. As Lara continued to stem the flow of blood, the walls began to grow dark red and hot. Then, they began to enclose on Lara. She searched around frantically for a place to hide, but the pit was her only source of sanctuary. She crawled into it, holding onto the outer rim. The walls crept in closer in and closer. She would have to let go. The walls were now only a few feet apart. Lara kicked at the wall of the pit, sending stones splashing to the bottom. Yes, it was water. She just hoped she wouldn't break a bone. And so, just as the walls closed in, Lara let go.

She landed with a loud splash. Using the dull red glow of the now closed walls above her, she looked around. The pit was narrow, with brick siding. She could see the dull shine of a grate just above her. But how to get up to it…?

She had a knife in her backpack. Lara reached behind her and felt… nothing! It was now that she realized that Kersey and his men took it, along with her pistols. She splashed the water in anger, just as the red glow faded. Now, Lara was sitting in utter darkness. Her breathing once again quickened, but she calmed it, and chose to put away the thoughts of God knows what was left behind by the rats. She felt the walls, waiting for her vision to grow used to the darkness. She felt a hole in the brick wall. Blinking, she realized that the walls were easy to take apart brick-by-brick. She reached up and pulled out a brick, then another, until she had enough grips for climbing. Lara continued pulling out bricks and climbing until she reached the metal grate. It was old and corroded, and did not take long to pull off of the wall. The hole from the grate seemed large enough to crawl through. She went inside and edged her way past several turns, eventually reaching a space where the piping had a broken opening. Lara was about to creep out of the hole when she heard voices.

"So when is Hightower getting here?" said a voice.

"Couple hours. I hate that prick," said another.

"Me too," said the first.

"Do you even know why we're here?"

"I don't ask, I just get paid, even if it's not enough."

"Well, we should get paid more, 'cause this place gives me the creeps."

"Yeah, man. Didja hear about that girl they caught?"

"Who, Croft? Yeah, they said she had found the rest of the map or whatever."

"Good, then we can leave soon."

"Yeah. When we're done here, I'm going to buy a nice, cold-- didja hear that?"

Lara had involuntarily gasped. She had accidentally hit her wound against the metal of the pipe while trying to get better positioned. She listened to the foot-falls of the mercenaries as they came up to the pipe. She saw the barrel of a rifle point inside, which Lara pushed hard back out. She heard a loud gasp of pain, and someone say, "My nose!" Quickly, she leapt from the pipe and kicked the second guard to the ground, knocking him unconscious. She then pulled the rifle out of the first guard's hands and aimed it at him. "Don't shoot!" he said, his face bloody.

"Where are my things?" Lara roared.

"Your… your guns are over there," he said, pointing to a table a few feet away.

"And my backpack?" she asked.

"It's… it's… it's with Mr. Kersey," he said, quickly throwing his arms up to shield himself.

"And where's Kersey?"

"Down the hall, to the left, second door on the right. The Chief Inquisitor's room, you can't miss it."

"Thank you," Lara said, then hit the guard hard in the face, throwing him into unconsciousness. Lara ran over to the table, strapped on her pistols, and grabbed three clips of rifle ammo, as she didn't have her extra ammo for the pistols. She quickly ran out of the room and into a hallway that held several instruments of torture, including a sword, a mace, a rack, and, to her horror, an iron maiden. She continued down this hallway and turned left at a fork. On the right side was a large metal door that read '_El Cuarto del_ _Principal Inquisitor_.' Lara was about to burst in when the door opened. She hid behind the open door and watched as Kersey came out, followed by two mercenaries. "So it is in Iran," Kersey said. "Mr. Hightower will be--"

"STOP!" Lara ordered, aiming at Kersey. He had her pack in his hand, and, to her astonishment, the pieces of the Statue of Jehovah and the first part of the map in the other. He quickly placed them in Lara's pack, and pulled his rifle off of his shoulder where it was hanging on a strap and aimed it at her. "Lara? How did you get out?" he said, amazed.

"Give me my pack!" she said.

"Kill her!" Kersey told his guards.

BANG BANG BANG BANG!

Lara ducked behind the door. Splinters of wood blasted out of the ancient door and cut her face. She quickly rolled out from behind her makeshift shield and fired, killing the guards, but not Kersey. Lara could see him running away and turning left. She sprinted after him, not even bothering to grab the guards' ammunition. She turned left and saw the entrance to the massive citadel she had seen hours before. Inside, she heard the sound of Kersey's pants and footfalls. Lara quickly ran inside.

The inside of the citadel was not very wide, with winding stairwells that had been fractured and built at odd angles, twisting their way up to the top, which seemed too far away to see. Lara ran up these stairs, looking for Kersey. The sound of bullets whizzing past her allowed her to spot Kersey a few rows up the citadel. BANG BANG! Lara fired in return. She chased Kersey up the winding stairs, until they eventually met at a landing before a chasm of broken stair. They stood across from each other, panting loudly. "Give… me… my pack," Lara said. Kersey snickered in between deep breaths.

"You'll have to kill me first," he said, aiming his rifle at Lara. Lara aimed her rifle at him. She pulled the trigger, but nothing fired. She was out of ammo. Kersey snickered again. She closed her eyes, frozen in fear, her mind blank, awaiting inevitable death. She flinched when she heard the trigger, but did not hear the blast, or the pain of the bullet. She quickly opened her eyes and saw that Kersey was out of ammo, too. He looked up in shock at Lara and said, "No."

She pulled out her pistols and shot Kersey. He fell to the ground, dead. Lara walked quickly over to his body and grabbed her pack. She quickly searched it, checking that everything was still there. Once she had made sure, she pulled it on and looked around. The landing she was currently on had a doorway, but it was sealed shut by planks of wood, presumably from Hightower's men barricading the wrong way out. She looked at the landing after the broken stairwell. It looked like a rope bridge had been placed there, presumably to let the mercenaries get down safely, but had been destroyed by something unknown, possibly from the recent duel. "I can make it," Lara said to herself. She stepped back a few paces, then ran and jumped onto the lip of the stairway. She quickly pulled herself up and onto the ledge. There was another doorway, this one open. It had yellow tape on the floor that led outside and onto the ledge. _My way out_, she thought to herself. She then ran inside.

The exit of the citadel led to a large platform, with several crates and tables. There was also a large row of stadium seats, with a stadium box. In the center was large pole, with chains tied to it. It was large and imposing, and Lara could practically hear the echoes of screams and jeers as sentences were given and blood was shed. "Auto de fe," Lara said to herself. She ran out of this room and up an ornate stairwell. This led to a large courtyard, with a very elaborate door at the end. She ran up to this and pulled it open. On the other side was, shockingly, a sewer. Lara dropped into this sewer and turned left. After a few minutes, she was met with two guards, who Lara quickly dispatched of. She then ran up to a ladder and climbed it up to a man-hole cover. She carefully pushed it open and looked around. Her location seemed fairly remote, away from the hustle-and-bustle of modern Seville. It was dusk. Lara crawled out of the sewer and saw a helicopter in the distance. She quickly sprinted away from it, ducking besides buildings and other structures until she got to a payphone.

"_Hola_," said Isabel's voice.

"Isabel, its me. I've got it."


	20. 3'12: The Map Complete

**AN: **Sorry this is really short again, but here it is. We're nearing the end! Enjoy this chapter, and remember my review policy: you review me, I review you.

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider and Lara Croft belong to Eidos and Core._

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_Chapter Twelve_

_The Map Complete_

_11:12 A.M._

_Croft Manor, Surrey, England_

"Iran?" Winston said.

"Yes, it's in Iran. The geographical specifications fit. Four rivers, a marshland, and a vast desert. It is in a mountain region near the Sahand Mountains by Tabriz," Lara said. She had the map in front of her, now complete.

"How do you expect to get there? If it's all desert--" Winston said.

"Arrange for a helicopter big enough to fit my motorcycle," Lara said. Her butler's eyes wondered, clearly at a loss as to how to get a helicopter.

"I'll have to cash on a few favors. But Lara… if it _is_ really there… it'll be guarded," Winston said, his tone genuinely fearful.

"I'll be safe, Winston, don't worry," she said. "If there's a map to it, it must want to be found." Winston sighed.

"When do you wish to leave?" he asked.

"Tonight."

"'Tonight?' Lara, why such a rush?"

"Hightower was told it's in Iran, its exact location. We're lucky if he's not there already," said Lara.

"I'll see what I can do," he said. He turned and began for the door, then looked back around. "Lara," he said, "please reconsider. This is something beyond anyone. Even your father would… would…. " At the mention of Lara's father his eyes watered. Lara looked down at the floor, at the Persian rug that was older than Winston himself. She heaved in a sigh and looked back up at him. "I'm sorry, Winston. I'm going," she said.

"Then be careful," he said and walked out of the room.

Lara rubbed her right arm nervously. Her stomach felt like an ocean resided within it. She remembered the story when she was little. It seemed almost magical in its details and writing. Yet it always struck her as unrealistic and just a good story, meant to entertain and provide a moral. Could it possibly be true? Could it really exist? She gently rubbed her bandaged stomach under her gray shirt, then examined the map once more. The map started in Jerusalem, then continued to King Solomon's Mines. It crossed several bodies of water and long stretches of desert, eventually coming to a mountain range, with the numbers one through seven in Hebrew inscribed across it, finally stopping at a green and blue rectangle. The rectangle had ornate drawings of giraffes, lions, and fish. Out of the rectangle came four lines, with the names Pison, Gihon, Hiddekel, and Euphrates labeling them. Atop the rectangle, written in ornate, yet archaic Hebrew, was written: _Guarded by the fiery sword of the Almighty and Eternal, the Great I Am, lies the Garden of Eden_.


	21. 3'13: The Land of Nod

**AN:** Hello! Welcome to the beginning of the end! This chapter has undergone some work from what I originally had to make Lara's emotions more believeable. I hope you're all entertained. As always, remember my review policy.

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider and Lara Croft belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics._

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_Chapter Thirteen_

_The Land of Nod_

_10:15 A.M._

_Desert Near Tabriz, Iran_

_Almost there_, thought Lara Croft as she sat in a military helicopter. The cloudless blue sky was contrasted against the harsh yellow of the desert sand. Slowly, the sand had intersected with rock and stone, meaning that the helicopter was nearing the mountains. "Ms. Croft," said an elderly yet imposing man with aviator sunglasses and a Cockney accent, "we're approaching the Sahands. At the next open location we're going to set you down."

"Yes, sir," Lara said.

"Sir," said the pilot, "there's a good spot."

"Alright, set her down," said Sunglasses. He turned back to Lara. "Well Lara, this is where we part ways," he said.

"Thanks Jim," said Lara, "I'll contact you after I'm done."

"Always a pleasure," said the man named Jim. He sat down opposite Lara as the helicopter descended. Jim had earlier asked Lara why they simply couldn't fly her over the mountain-range, searching for whatever she was looking for. She had said that she herself didn't know where exactly her prize was situated, and could've been underground for all she knew. Thus, going on ground was the best choice. Once they had landed, the cargo bay opened, allowing Lara to take her motorcycle out. She mounted it, and then sped off. She heard the sound of the helicopter take off once more, and then only the sound of her motorcycle against rock.

The air was warm against Lara's sunglass wearing face. The pit of her stomach rumbled as before, but instead of waves during a cyclone, they were more like waves upon the beach on the first day of summer, when excitement filled the air, as she began her ascension into the mountainous range of what the ancient Sumerians called Edin. She was heading east into a mountain pass. According to the map, this was the way she had to go to reach the Garden. Then, along this pass, she would have to go through another six gates, or passes, until she made it to Eden. It would take some time, but she figured she should be near or at her destination before tomorrow afternoon.

The motorcycle bounced up and down in the dirt. Lara marveled at the tall mountain walls of Edin, and how ornate carvings and statues were seen every now and again. They resembled the statues she had seen in Jerusalem, but were much, much older, and even seemed as delicately carved as those of Ancient Greece. Eventually, after several hours of driving, Lara decided to take a break. She wiped the sweat off her brow and took a gulp of water. She looked around her current location and saw a large shape in the mountain. It was the Hebrew number one. She went up and lightly touched it.

The ground beneath her shook, causing Lara to almost fall to the ground. She quickly jumped onto her motorcycle and began driving it down the pass. Large boulders fell all around her. Her motorcycle banged against falling stone and debris. A deafening crack of stone passed through the air. A massive gap was forming just ahead of her. She quickly revved the engine and leapt through the air, and onto the other side. Boulders continued to crash around her, the land shaking as if the Earth was having a seizure. She took a sharp turn to her right and drove straight down the pass and onto a large plateau.

The quaking stopped. All was normal again. Lara stopped her motorcycle and took deep breaths. Her heart felt as if it itself were tumbling down with the rocks, jolting and stopping irregularly. The excited rumble in her stomach quickly converted back to waves in a hurricane. _Apparently, that was the first pass_, she thought to herself. She took several more breaths, then began again down the valleys and ravines.

She drove for an hour, experiencing harsher and rockier land than before, when she came to the second pass. Lara held her breath, expecting another rock fall, and crept her bike forward. Nothing happened for a few moments. Then, a sudden wind picked up and a deafening buzzing filled the sky. A giant shadow covered the mountain pass. Lara looked behind her and saw a giant swarm of locusts bearing down upon her. She again revved the engine of her motorcycle and sped off. She knew the locusts wouldn't hurt her, but they _could_ swarm her, causing a crash. The sound of her motorcycle was drowned out by the sound of the locust's buzzing wings. She felt them crawling onto her body and hair, their tiny legs pricking her skin. Her pulse was quickening until she was almost hyperventilating. Her mind blanked, responding only to the demonic buzz. She floored the engine, and eventually came out of the mountain pass into the fresh air.

When Lara looked behind her, the locusts were gone. She shut off her bike and got off. She reached for her bottle of water and watched as large droplets jumped out of the opening and onto the harsh sand and dust. Her whole body was trembling. She took a small sip of water, feeling her throat trying to resist it, then screwed the cap back on. She retreated over to a secluded spot in the shade and sat down. "What… what…?" was all she could mutter. Lara laid back against the rock and sat in thought for sometime. Did she really need to find the Garden of Eden? She could just let Hightower take the glory. She didn't need it. After all, there would be other treasures, other tombs to explore. There was the Philosopher's Stone Winston had mentioned (it seemed so long ago, when times were much simpler, and the thought of an emerald statue was just interesting enough to get her some pocket-change). She already had an idea that it could be in Rome. The Spear of Destiny was another example. _Although I think I'm done with religious artifacts for some time_, she thought to herself, smiling.

The Atlantean Scion her father had searched for suddenly sprang into her mind. Her father had been so driven to find it and discover what happened to his beloved. Yet he had never gotten far in his searches. Either he would run out of money and help, or the clues led him to a dead-end. The sight of her father in Egypt still remained with Lara, and the sudden idea of the Scion of Atlantis suddenly brought back memories of her father and herself on expeditions. After her mother had died in Nepal, Richard Croft and his daughter had grown close, going on expeditions to far-off places around the world. It was he who had first suggested going out for herself to be an archaeologist after university.

"Think about it: leading a dig team into underground tombs, finding gold and jewels, becoming famous for your discoveries," he had said.

"But what about mummies coming to life?" Lara had asked.

"Bah, you can take care of them!" Richard joked. He had then put on a very serious face. "Never let anything stand in your way. Ever. No matter who may put you down, who may call your ideas and techniques ludicrous, don't let them get you down. Never let that happen. Promise me Lara."

"I promise, daddy."

The recollection of that conversation gave Lara renewed energy. That old, familiar spirit that had awakened in Egypt began to course through her body. She got back onto her motorcycle and started off again. White clouds had now formed, giving her occasional shade from the blistering sun. She kept her mind on the goal of reaching Eden, which gave her the adrenaline boost she needed. Yet that stopped when she reached the third pass. Lara took a few deep breaths, then quickly drove forward.

In seconds there was pitch blackness. Even with the headlight on, Lara found it difficult to drive. Loud, terrifying sounds would screech from the darkness, along with the occasional scream, as if she had driven over something and killed it. A high-pitched laughter would echo around her, taunting her. It was if she had descended into the underworld. Panic clawed at her brain. Her whole body twitched and began spasm. Something here? No, over here! Something was tickling the inside of her ear, like a bug or long fingernail. She swatted it away, ridding her ear of only air. The voices laughed loudly. The claw of panic was making her way through her innards, infecting each cell with its plague. Lara was reaching the end of her nerve. She took out her pistol and fired blindly into the darkness. This only caused the laughter to grow louder. "STOP IT! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, STOP!" she cried out. She was on the verge of tears and hysterics when the light suddenly hit her. She blinked, blinded for a few moments, then gently pressed on the pass. "The Ten Plagues of Egypt," Lara suddenly realized. Yet there were only four more passes; what other plague could be thrown at her next? Her body involuntarily convulsed.

Lara continued driving for the rest of the day. Near sunset, she came to the fourth pass. There was a menacing red hue the pass gave off, yet Lara, despite her mind begging with her not to, continued down it.

There was the sound of a gigantic wave, like a tsunami. Lara looked high above her and saw droplets land on her sunglasses. They were thick and red. _Blood_, she thought as more liquid came down. The pass began to shake, and as if a dam had been opened, torrents of bloody waves came down from each side of the pass. Lara quickly revved the engine, escaping the flood. She could feel the warm dampness of the blood splashing against her motorcycle. Her legs and socks felt heavy and thick, covered with blood. Lara let out a small scream, and lunged her motorcycle forward. She tasted copper. She spat out the blood, almost vomiting into the rapidly reddening sand.

The sound of waves cut off abruptly. Lara looked behind her and saw the pass as dry as ever, yet still emitting the red hue. She panted loudly, feeling the thick fluid still clinging to her legs. She took out her water and tore off her boots. She doused her legs and boots with water, frantically cleaning off the blood. She scrubbed against their seams until they were almost shredded to pieces, yet the quickly coagulating blood remained. It dried under her fingernails until they felt clogged with cloth and the brown crusts. She picked under her fingernails hysterically, heaving in tiny breaths, until her own blood was now mixed with the old. Her whole body tensed, and she collapsed.

Lara awoke to the sound of the wind whistling in the valley. It gave her goose bumps. She quickly jumped onto her motorcycle and grasped the handlebars. She noticed her fingertips were pink and puffy. She took a shuttering breath, and then pressed on into the unknown.

She had only driven for about fifteen minutes when she came to the fifth pass. Forsaking the long wait of what was to come, she revved the engine forward and into the valley pass. There was a sudden sound of thunder. The sky turned to a dark gray, almost black. Lara looked up and saw red flashes in storm clouds above her. Then, she watched as massive, fiery stones began to fall from the sky. She floored the engine as hard as she could and weaved in between the falling stones, having several close misses. A terrible burning, more painful than anything she had faced so far, seared across her right arm. She looked and saw a small cut of skin turn black and bloody, right next to the scar from the bullet wound she had sustained in Tanis. She grabbed her arm and applied pressure. Her glasses leaned forward on the bridge of her nose as she suddenly jerked around. The panic claw returned, slashing at her stomach. She screamed in a mixture of frustration, anger, and pain and finally made it through he pass.

Only a few feet ahead was a large hill, and the sixth pass. Lara got off her bike and sat on the ground. The panic claw drew one final slash against her stomach, and Lara turned over and vomited into the sand. She coughed loudly and heaved spasmodically. She wiped the bile from her mouth and leaned against the harsh rock. The clouds in the sky were no more, and there was no protection from the sun. She took a final drink from her water and splashed some on her wound before it was finally empty. She closed her eyes for what seemed to be a long time, then gingerly wrapped her wound in some gauze from her pack. Her feet were lead-like as she dragged herself forward. With all her will, Lara begged for a cloud of a shadow to relieve her from the heat, but none came. She mounted her bike and began to ascend the hill.

She carefully drove up it, and then, to her horror, she was met with a sharp incline. She tried stopping the motorcycle, but gravity was too strong. She tumbled off the motorcycle and towards the end of the pass. Yet this end was a massive cliff side. She would fall off and die! Lara frantically grasped anything solid, but nothing could hold her. She screamed and flew off the cliff.

The motorcycle passed her in the air. Her red sunglasses flew off her face. She watched, helplessly, as the ground flew up to her. She screamed loudly as it came closer, closer, closer, and then….


	22. 3'14: The Sixth Pass

**AN: **Hello everyone! Well, we're back again from where we left off. This chapter has really changed from previously, especially the ending, which now has a lot more detail than originally. As always, remember to review, and I'll review you. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider, Lara Croft, and dialogue from Tomb Raider: Legend belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics._

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_Chapter Fourteen_

_The Sixth Pass_

_1:26 P.M._

_Sahand Mountains, Iran_

Darkness. A bright light. Where was she? Lara blinked her eyes, trying to regain her vision. The room she was in was stone, with several pillars with green symbols. In the middle was a dais with something resembling a hilt--

"No! No it can't be!" she said, her voice strange and distant. She was back to the day after the crash in Nepal. She ran up to the entrance of the sword room and watched her younger self walk down the stone steps into the chamber. "Stop! Go back to her!" Lara cried out to her younger self. Young Lara did not hear this, and instead proceeded up to the sword, her face very interested. "Stay away from that!" Lara cried again, but young Lara either didn't hear her or didn't care, because she went up to the sword, looked back at the sound of her mother, and touched the hilt. Lara then watched in horror as her mother grabbed her daughter and pulled her away. "Mother! Stay away! Don't touch it!" Lara said, but Amelia Croft didn't hear her. Lara tried to grab her, but her hands just seemed to fly through the air, her mother always out of reach. Amelia went up to the green glowing ring and spoke to it. "DON'T TOUCH THE SWORD!" Lara cried, yet her mother did grab the sword, and disappeared in a giant green burst of light.

"MOTHER!" both Laras cried out. As young Lara ran out in search of her mother, Lara stepped up to the dais. The sword was gone, along with her mother. She touched the cold stone and closed her eyes. She was so close to her mother for the first time in so many years, and yet out of reach. She opened her eyes to see darkness once more.

In moments the darkness receded. She was in a massive room with a roaring fire and a portrait above it. The whole place seemed comfortable. At first Lara thought she was back home, that by some miracle she had left the prison of memories. Yet, to her great sadness, she saw Winston, his hair a dark gray instead of the white he had in the present. He went up to the door of Croft Manor and opened it.

"Ah, Dr. Jenkins. What a pleasant--" Winston was saying.

"Richard is missing," the man in the doorway said. Winston's eyes widened, and he held onto the wall for support. "Are you sure?" he said, his voice suddenly raspy.

"We were in Angkor Wat. He went off and disappeared. We didn't find the body," said Jenkins. He nervously polished his glasses on his shirt, and seemed to give no sign of stopping.

"My God," Winston gasped, retreating into the hall and sitting by the coffee table, currently laden with books. He ran his fingers through his normally neat hair and then covered his face with his hands.

"Winston!" said a familiar voice. Trotting down the grand staircase of Croft Manor was a girl in pig-tails, wearing a white tea shirt and shorts, barefoot. "How's about I challenge you to tennis again? I promise I'll let you win!" she said. Though Lara was expecting it, she was still slightly shocked at the sight of her 15-year-old self. The pig-tailed girl's expression changed in a flash. A shadow quickly fell upon her. "Dr. Jenkins," she asked the man in the doorway, "what is it? Aren't you supposed to be in Cambodia with my father?"

"Lara, come here a moment," he said. He took a shuddering breath and reapplied his glasses. The younger Lara sat next to Winston. Every now and then he gave a shudder, his head still in his hands, but he was very quiet.

"Lara, dear… your father… is… um…." Jenkins was stumbling on his words. The young Lara's eyes were inquisitive, yet oddly frightened. Her pupils were dilated, even though it was bright in the room. Lara of the present, however, knew what the man was going to say. During the long year between Peru and therapy she relived this moment over and over again, thinking how Jenkins had told her the news so poorly, how Winston refused to make a sound for several hours, and how her younger self did not even cry for a year. "Lara… your daddy is dead," he said. Jenkins face, formally nervous with anticipation, was now blank. Young Lara's tan face paled. The present Lara's legs suddenly felt like lead.

"How?" the young Lara said, staring into Jenkins's face.

"He went into Angkor Wat and he never came out," said Jenkins. His face remained passive. Lara of the present felt her knees shake. She suddenly felt an intense beating behind her eyes that she recognized as rage, telling her to jump at Jenkins for putting the answer so bluntly, as if discussing the incident with mates beside the water-cooler.

"He… but he must still be alive? He can't have just disappeared?" Lara of long ago said. Her lower lip was trembling.

"I'm afraid not. It is very treacherous in Angkor Wat. Cheer up deary. You're a strong girl." He gave a smile that attempted to encourage, but only increased the beating in Lara's head. She clenched her fists tightly.

Young Lara stared up at the portrait of her parents. Both gone, leaving her an orphan. Jenkins patted her consolingly on the head and left. The scene changed.

"Lara! Get down here you slacker! Jason says we're about to break through!"

"In a minute, Amanda. We have some structural concerns."

"Just get down here!"

Lara walked up to the rope and checked it. Moments before, Anaya had warned her not to use it. A wave of cold, ominous dread washed over her. Something told her not to use the rope, not to follow it down, or else everything in her life would go wrong. Yet, for some strange reason, she grabbed it and began to climb down. There was a sudden jolt, and the rope broke. She landed against the wooden platform she had traversed several times since she had come to Peru. "Did the rope break?" she heard Amanda ask innocently. Of course it had broken; it already had before. Lara shook her head. What did that mean? She crouched under the opening in the wall and came out into the dark mine. "Looks like we lost the lights! I hope you brought flares," Amanda called. Lara lit a flare and through it down the ramp in front of her. The back of her mind tickled with a sense of eeriness. It was like she had dreamed this. She slid down the ramp and walked towards the sinkhole. The planks were missing. "The planks over the sinkhole broke, so you're gonna have to swing across!" Amanda warned. Lara put her hand to her head; yes, this seemed so familiar. She jumped and traversed the sinkhole using the pole that had been holding lamps until recently. She landed on the other side and lit a flare. She heard Amanda giggle. "You're lagging!"

"You're such a tourist!" Lara said, continuing her pace. She turned a corner and heard a scream of pain.

"Eva!" Amanda yelled in fear. The earth began to shake. Lara ran forward, but jumped back when rocks fell in front of her, blocking her path. Before the debris piled to the top, she saw Amanda run back, and a red and black shape fly after her. "What's happening? Amanda? Amanda!" Lara shouted, yet she had the nagging feeling it wouldn't matter if Amanda responded; she would see her soon.

Lara ran back and towards the path to the broken trap room. She lit a flare and crawled under semi-closed gates. Her heart suddenly skipped a beat. There, on the floor beside a crate, was her friend, Sarah. She ran up to her and crouched beside her. Her body was shredded and bloody. Her eyes remained fearful, despite the spark she usually had turned on high was now put out. "Oh Sarah… oh God… what's happened?" was all she could say. Lara blinked and looked at the wall ahead of her in desperation. She covered her face with her right hand and shut Sarah's eyes. She stood and took a shuddering breath; she needed to continue to find Amanda and a way out.

She grabbed the crate beside Sarah's corpse and pulled it onto the pressure plate. Spears jutted out of the wall, only one unbroken. She jumped and grabbed it, then swung onto a ruined platform. She ran forward and grabbed a ledge on the wall. She shimmied across it and jumped towards a platform that let her continue on.

"My God," Lara said. The chamber she was now in had deployed all of its traps. A corpse of another archaeologist was on the floor, his body similar to Sarah's. "Lara! Over here!" a voice called.

"Kent? What's going on?" Lara said, running up to her friend. He was trapped behind a gate, gripping the bars so tightly his knuckles were white. She wondered if he knew about Sarah, his girlfriend. That nagging feeling of familiarity told her that he never would.

"It killed Oscar!" Kent said, looking frantically behind him.

"What did?" asked Lara, but she suspected it was the red and black shape. No, she _knew_ it was the red and black shape.

"I don't know, I don't know, I didn't see! This gate won't budge! Get me out!" Kent said. He was shaking violently, and constantly looking behind him.

"It's all right," said Lara (though she knew it wasn't). "What--"

"There's a hole above me. You've got to get me out! Hurry, we've got to get out of here!" Lara turned and noticed a boulder on the pressure plate. She pulled it off, and the spears receded. There was a rope above her. She climbed onto the raised stone platform and jumped towards the rope. She began to climb up it when Kent said, "It's coming! Damn it, Lara!"

"I'm almost there!" Lara said. She swung towards the second raised platform and leapt onto it.

"Hey, I think I see a light!" Kent said, his voice calming.

"Stay there Kent, I'm coming down!" Lara jumped down the hole above Kent, and saw he had meandered away.

"Amanda? Amanda!" he shouted. Panic was scratching at Lara's stomach. She thought it was a bad idea to yell at the moment, and knew Kent would pay for it.

"Kent!?" Amanda's voice echoed. Kent's face glowed. He turned to Lara, whose eyes were widening. "It's her!" he exclaimed, and began to run towards her voice.

"Wait! Kent!" Lara called after him. She saw him run into the tunnel, turn to his left, his face pale with panic, and then a large burst of blood in the air.

Oxygen left Lara's body then. She heaved spasmodically, and cried out, "Kent!" Then, from around the corner where Kent was just standing, the red and black figure appeared. It had great black tentacles that waved in the air, and a muscular upper torso. There was no lower half on this beast, and it apparently didn't need it: it moved entirely by leaping with its two massive claws. Orange and red fire-like light gleamed inside the monster, and two bulbous yellow, pupil-less eyes glared at her. It began to leap towards her in long strides, and Lara ran from it. She rolled down a second passage, losing the monster for a moment.

The panic claw squeezed her tightly so that it clouded her mind. Her legs felt like thick pieces of meat, and seemed to move slower than they should have. She stumbled and cried out, but kept going. The monster roared behind her, the sound burning into her brain like an iron. Lara could feel its hot, stinking breath. She stopped at a series of broken pillars and looked back. The monster had stopped, but was rearing back for another tremendous leap. She jumped over the pillar and sprinted over the second one. There was another chamber, a rope hanging from the top of it. She leapt for it, but the rope broke, and she landed hard on the floor. The monster jumped into the chamber, and melted into the opposite wall.

Lara's breathing was ragged. Her feet were aching painfully from the drop. Her heart was going several million miles per hour, and she seemed unable to blink. She lit another flare absent-mindedly and saw another platform. She jumped onto it and climbed up it. There was another platform that she jumped towards. In the wall of this platform was a closed gate, and, from somewhere beyond it, came Amanda.

"Lara! Jason's dead! Everybody's _dead_!" she shrieked.

"There's something… I don't know, I don't know what it was. I only saw--"

"Ah! No!" Amanda suddenly screamed. The familiar roar of the monster echoed in her passage. Amanda frantically sprinted away, followed by an archaeologist Lara had never met. She quickly hid as the monster leapt after them. Once the coast was clear, she looked ahead and saw a rope that was too far out of reach. There was another pressure plate on the floor. She turned around and noticed a boulder on the previous platform. She ran and jumped back onto it and pushed the boulder off. She watched it roll across the floor, and come to a rest on the plate. The walls above the plate sent out a few spear traps, one allowing Lara to swing on. Lara did just that and then grabbed the rope. She swung onto the next platform, and ran into the doorwat.

The next corridor in here was still somewhat intact, with the exception of some fallen rock. Lara ran thorough it and saw another sinkhole with spikes in it. She traversed the pole above it and landed back on solid ground. She ran out of the passage, and entered a massive chamber, similar to the one where her team had broken through the hollow wall. Amanda was at the opposite side, inspecting a purple stone. Lara looked behind her and backed away from where she had just come from; she thought she had heard a now all-too-familiar noise.

"I think this stone unlocks the door," said Amanda.

Lara's mind screamed that the stone was evil, and what doom had already come to pass would happen again. "I don't like it," Lara said, "are you sure you're reading it properly?"

"That Thing is coming! You have a better idea?" Amanda said, angrily, yet terror was very evident in her voice.

"The door might be trapped!" Lara said, her icy tone dissolving. She pointed towards the door Amanda spoke of.

"_We're _trapped!" Amanda shouted. The unearthly roar reached their ears. Lara shivered, yet for some odd reason, she had a sense of comfort. She now knew, without any doubt in her body, that her only true love, David, was not the monster. There was no sign of goodness in that beast, no shred of humanity. No, that Thing was not David.

"Ah! Oh God!" Amanda screamed, bringing Lara out of her reverie. It suddenly reminded her of her mother, and how Amelia Croft had said the same thing so many years ago. Amanda pulled at the stone, and Lara turned to see the monster at the entrance. Her legs refused to budge. Her breathing short, Lara braced herself for what was to come. Yet the claws never reached her. She looked back and saw Amanda holding the stone. The chamber suddenly began to shake. Water rushed in. "Amanda, run!" Lara shouted. She sprinted into the now open door, but looked back to see Amanda's leg become trapped by debris. "Amanda!" Lara screamed. Metal gates tore down to the ground, but Lara caught them, holding them from falling further. Amanda pulled at her caught leg as the water began to flood the room. The gates were practically pulling Lara's arms off; she couldn't hold on much longer. The water rose incredibly fast, and in moments it had covered her upper torso, reaching her head. Amanda took one last gulp of air, then plunged under the water, trying to pull out her foot. Lara swallowed a large amount of air and held the gates. Thankfully, she was an accomplished swimmer, and could hold her breath for long periods of time. Yet her arms were screaming for mercy: she would have to let go of the gate. Amanda looked at her, her eyes large and pleading. She opened her mouth, trying to say, "No," but only let out a large amount of air bubbles. Rocks suddenly rained down on her, covering her completely. Lara let go of the gate in shock. More debris hailed down upon Amanda. Lara suddenly realized her lungs were screaming for oxygen. She swam away, feeling like she had relived the worst experience of her life for a second time. The world in a smash turned black, and Lara knew no more.


	23. 3'15: Fruitless

**AN:** Well, this is it. The finale of Lara's First Adventure. This chapter is very violent, more so than before. Please remember to read and review, and I'll review you. Now, enjoy the show.

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider and Lara Croft belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics._

* * *

_

_Chapter Fifteen_

_Fruitless_

_1:27 P.M._

_Sahand Mountains, Iran_

Every muscle in her body ached. Lara Croft opened her eyes and saw the smoking wreck of her motorcycle. She coughed into the sand, kicking up dust. With slow, careful, and weakened movements she stood. She gazed upwards and saw she was far beneath the cliff she had fallen from. She looked back down and ran her fingers across her body. There was no blood or broken bones, not even a bruise. Her brain pulsed with the sudden recollection of the relived memories. "The sixth pass," she said to herself. The visions had all been a dream. Somehow, this brought no solace for Lara, yet she willed herself to go on. Just a few yards away was a stone wall, with the Hebrew seven upon it. Bracing herself for the worst, Lara touched the wall. It slowly opened, like a door, allowing Lara entrance into a dark cave. Her eyes scanned the inside frantically. She crept down it slowly, stumbling upon her own feet, when suddenly a bright light shone in the cavern. She shielded her eyes and crept forward. When she removed her hands, she gasped at the sight before her.

A set of stairs led from the perch she was currently on down into a massive area of land. Before this land was a large, ancient gate, that was connected by the sides of the mountain. Behind the gate was a massive square of desert, with two dead trees. Lara slowly walked down the stairs, hearing the sounds of wind echoing through the canyon. Her feet stumbled on stones and loose sand, unusually ungraceful. The stairwell was lined with more of the brilliant statues of cherubim and angels that seemed to grow from the ground. At last, she made it to the bottom. She walked slowly forward, then stopped. No, no it couldn't be! She ran up to the rotting, wooden gate and stared with wide eyes at the massive stone lock before her. "No, no, no, no," she repeated. She sprinted around the desert, checking behind boulders, digging in random spots of sand. After all this, she was locked out?

"Well done, Ms. Croft," said the all-too familiar voice of Preston Hightower. Lara looked up from her spot in the sand and saw Hightower and thirteen mercenaries walking down the stairwell.

"How did you find me?" she muttered, yet her voice echoed up towards Hightower.

"Tracking signal in the pack. We figured you'd get it back, so we decided to slip it in. It's a shame we had to lose a good man though. But thank you for letting us know where to look, otherwise we'd be flying over the sight for days."

"Hightower," said Lara, standing. Her fingers twitched. "There's no point in your coming here. It's useless."

"What? You think you can keep the Knowledge for yourself? You think that you can do this all on your own? You think you're powerful enough to stop my ambition? Your hubris shocks even me. Wasn't it you that said that all people like me want is money and power? The irony is sweet and bitter Ms. Croft. People like me, people like you, people like us, are all that really survive in this world. And with the help of Eden's sweet Knowledge, we can own this mad world. We can make it our own. I can--"

"Preston," said Lara, "it's locked." Hightower stopped and blinked.

"I beg your pardon?" he said.

"The gate to Eden is locked," Lara said.

"You lie."

"I don't." Hightower pushed Lara out of the way and ran up to the gate.

"No…" he said, his voice no longer bold, "it can't."

"It is," said Lara.

"There must be a key," he said, still staring at the lock.

"There isn't," she said, watching Hightower breaking. Her fingers twitched again.

"Then… it must need a sacrifice," he said, slouching so far inward he was positively diminutive. "Yes. A sacrifice. Kill Croft." Lara looked and saw the mercenaries point their rifles at her. She leapt behind a rock as their bullets sprayed the sand. "Take her head and bring it to me!" raved Hightower. Lara pulled out her pistols and fired.

BANG BANG BANG BANG!

She heard a mercenary grunt and hit the sand. She reloaded and fired again. There was another grunt, and another death. She ran out behind the rock for another place to hide, when a mercenary tackled her to the ground. Her pistols flew out of her hand. She clawed at the man's face, only to have him slap her. She bit his cheek and thrashed her head around. The man screamed in intense pain, and Lara let go. A bit of skin was missing from the man's cheek. She pushed him off her and kicked his neck with her steel-toed boot. She spat blood into the sand and dodged another tackle. She scooped a bit of sand and threw it into the mercenary's face. He stumbled backward, giving Lara a moment to roll and grab a pistol. She shot him in the gut, sending him reeling backward.

Then everything changed.

The sky quickly darkened until it was almost night. Hightower was holding the gate, completely unaware of the spectacle. A bright red flash suddenly illuminated the desert, and a massive fiery sword sprung from behind the gate. It soared over it and hovered squarely in the middle of the desert. Lara's feet were rooted to the spot, sweat breaking out all over her body. The flames of the sword crackled through the air. Then, in a flash, it stabbed a mercenary, charring his body. It flew through him and stabbed another. Gunfire rang out as one panicked mercenary tried to destroy the sword, but met the same doom. Others ran for the stairs, only to be skewered like some over-cooked shish kabob of meat.

Lara stood, her eyes the sole thing moving. The sword burned into her retinas as it cut down the last of the mercenaries. Gunfire rang out one last time, and Lara twitched. She looked down and saw a bullet wound in her chest, just above her heart. She looked up, her face contorted in confusion, and saw Hightower holding her other pistol, smoke floating upwards from its barrel. An "Oh," escaped her lips before she fell to the ground. Her legs curled up against her as she felt cold climbing crawling in her chest. Cold, but no pain.

Lara's eyes rolled upwards in her head. Her forehead was on fire, and no sweat could extinguish the flame. She looked upwards and towards Hightower, a bloody mercenary knife in his hand. "You caused it all, Lara. You caused this doom. You caused the gate to be locked. You caused me my dignity, my hopes, my expectations. Only through your death can you be forgiven. Hubris, Lara, is your own enemy. Poetic, isn't it?" He bent downwards, blood from the knife dripping onto Lara's neck. Then, she was blinded by the great orange fire of the sword as it stabbed through the man before her. Hightower was becoming charred with the sword's flame arching up over his body from his torso. The sword lifted him into the air and threw him into the black abyss.

The blade hovered back into the middle of the desert. Lara grasped a fallen boulder for support as she stood. She stared at its brilliant orange light before it disappeared, deeming her an inappropriate enemy and not worthy of its wrath. The sky returned to its blue color, and all seemed right again. She navigated her way past the corpses, not bothering to pick up her pistols, and stumbled up the stairs, her hands pressed to her shoulder blade. The coldness was ebbing away, leaving a dull pain creeping in her body. She passed through the black tunnel and came back out onto the pass. A black helicopter sat near her broken motorcycle, free from its former occupants. She climbed into its cockpit and picked up the radio. Her blood smeared the radio controls as she turned the knobs.

"This is Tango 390," said the voice of Jim from the helicopter.

"Jim, it's Lara," responded Lara, her voice trembling. The radio in her hand shook. "Can you get a fix on where this transmission is coming from?"

"Yeah, hold on," said Jim. There was a minute long pause, and then he responded: "I've got ya, Lara."

"Good, now get me out of here and to a hospital. I've been shot in the chest. It's not awful, but it certainly is decreasing my life expectancy at the moment," she demanded. Her fingers began to pale.

"What happened?" Jim responded urgently as helicopter rotors kicked up in the background.

"Gunfight," said Lara succinctly. Everything was becoming hazy.

"I'll be there in a few minutes Lara, don't worry," said Jim. There was a brief silence. "Did you find what you were looking for?" he asked. Lara sighed.

"No," she said. "No I didn't."


	24. 4: The Epilogue

**AN: **Well, here it is. The final part of Tomb Raider: Genesis. I hope you all enjoyed reading the story as much as I did writing it. I can't believe it's been one year since I finished the story. Thank you to all my readers for sticking with me. I hope you all eagerly await the sequel!

**Disclaimer:** Tomb Raider and its respective characters belong to Eidos and Crystal Dynamics._

* * *

__Part Four_

_The Epilogue_

_The Future of the Tomb Raider_

_4:54 P.M._

_Croft Manor, Surrey, England_

The sun cast its gilded rays through the window of Lara's bedroom. It was late May, and outside on a nearby tree a songbird was singing. An atlas was laid out before her on her bed, and she was reading it absentmindedly. She rubbed her arm over her wounded shoulder and chest. The bandages seemed tighter after she had new ones applied. The memories at the gate seemed blurry now, a rush of red colors and sounds. When she had returned home she was relieved to find that the press had never gotten word of her second adventure into danger. Winston had embraced her and asked if everything was alright, to which Lara had replied yes. Winston said no more about it, to Lara's satisfaction.

A few days after she had returned, Winston showed her an article in the newspaper detailing the recent disappearance of Preston Hightower, of Hightower Manufacturing. It stated that the company had recently lost a lot of money, and was currently in a bidding war between Natla Technologies and RX Tech. At last, Lara had Hightower's motive: to gain the precious Knowledge that Eden provided, and save his company. She felt a twinge of regret at the idea that Preston did not wish to take over the world, but quickly recalled his ambition and violence he showcased later at the gates, evaporating Lara's regret.

Lara closed her atlas and walked out of her room. The only sound in the hallways out of her room were the songbird and the pat of her feet against the carpet and tile. When she made it to the entrance hall she looked up at the painting of her mother and father. Lara heaved a nostalgic sigh and then let her eyes drift to the Statue of Jehovah. It's two halves were incased in pressurized glass, ensuring their care. It was here that Lara took a moment to think back to Nepal, back to the plane crash. It was hard to believe how much she had changed since that fateful day, when the fire of wonderment and curiosity first awoke, and the belief that everything she had done since came from then. Outside the early summer light dulled as a cloud passed over. The sound of the songbird grew distant as it flew away. She sat on the couch beside the coffee table and stared at the portrait. The sound of leather shoes grew out of the door from the kitchen. "Everything alright Ms. Croft?" Winston asked with a fatherly tone.

Lara shut her eyes briefly. "Yes," she said. "I think I'm quite alright."

_The End…_


	25. Acknowledgements

_Acknowledgements_

This work started for me back in 2006, when "Tomb Raider: Legend" was released. The story seemed to stick to me and inspire me, and I slowly began to imagine the entire plot, and the idea of what Lara Croft was like, and what she did, in her first adventure that made her what we know today. I had never imagined a video game capable of that, and yet, here we are. So I wish to thank the makers of "TR:L" for their amazing story telling and an engrossing game.

I wish to thank my school, who gave me the time during really dull classes to imagine Lara's adventures. I also wish to thank my sophomore Religion teacher for spending heavy time on the Genesis story. To my English teachers of that year and this, thank you both so much for having us read such amazing works of literature and giving me the interest that helped me maintain this story and to not abandon it. Thank you all!

To my parents, for helping me foster my creative side.

To Internet sites like Wikipedia, Tomb Raider Chronicles, Youtube, and so many others for giving me the information that I needed.

And to you all, my readers, for leaving me great feedback and input. It means so much to me that I have an audience, and it gives me the knowledge that people will read my works, including the sequel to TR:G.

And to anyone or anything else I forgot to mention. Thank you!

-TJJW

Rough draft completed: April 29th, 2007

Final draft completed: April 27th, 2008


End file.
